Sport
19 June, 2026
Demons soar over Eagles
THE Mininera and District grand final rematch saw reigning premiers Lismore/Derrinallum comfortably defeat Ararat Eagles by 81 points last Saturday.
The Demons were on top all day in wet conditions, recording a 14.11.95 to 2.2.14 win at Alexandra Oval in Ararat.
“It didn’t stop raining for the whole day, so to have 24 scoring shots to four was a really good four quarter performance,” Lismore/Derrinallum coach Alec Wiltshire said.
“It was another overall team effort too, we didn’t have any passengers, so a really good game.”
The game had plenty of niggle early, with a couple of incidents being looked at by the Mininera League, who film every game.
“I don’t know whether it was instructed, but from the first bounce they were into us. But they ran out of puff with that stuff probably after a quarter and a half.
“There’s a couple of incidents that are getting a closer look at, we feel if the league does something about it, we’re pretty happy, so we’ll just let them go through that process.”
Star ruckman Henry Walsh was the Demons best in the win.
“Henry was good in those conditions when he can hit the ball 25 metres and just get it going our way in a territory battle, him doing that is better than a kick a lot of the time.
“His follow up work was really good on the weekend as well, he just rucks all day, he just keeps going and going and going, not coming off for a rest at all too.”
Captain Charlie Brett was also in the best for the Demons.
“Charlie changed his role up a little bit on the weekend just with a couple of boys away and a couple of injuries, we put him back out on the wing and geez, he would’ve had five or six intercept possessions in the first quarter, and just carried on from there.
“He gave us plenty of drive and was just like the Great Wall of China, you just couldn’t get past the guy.”
Forwards Lachie Constable and Austin Humphrey kicked seven goals between them, with Constable kicking four and Humphrey three.
“We had a big emphasis on locking the footy in the forward half and basically, it wasn’t going to be pretty, but if we kept getting it in there, we were probably going to score.
“We just scrapped and put in multiple efforts, and ended up getting rewarded with a free kick or individual sort of effort to win a one on one and even 'Consta' (Constable) thinks he’s a ruckman now after he grabbed one out of the ruck and kicked a goal,” Wiltshire laughed.
Tomorrow’s game sees Lismore/Derrinallum host Glenthompson/Dunkeld in the first game at the Lismore Recreation Reserve for 2026.
“The Rams are a good challenge, they just seem to match up really well against us.
“I remember last year at halftime, there was probably only a couple of goals in it at their home deck, and we ran over the top of them in the second half, but they match up well, they’ve got some really good players that seem to neutralise our best players as well.”
The reserves match was a low scoring affair, with the Demons winning 4.1.25 to 3.5.23.
Tyla Reid, Angus Stewart, Laine Scott and Hunter Thompson were the Demons best in the win.
There was no under 17 football with Ararat not fielding a team in that grade.
The under 13 game saw Lismore/Derrinallum register a 4.0.24 to 0.3.3 win.
Eddie Gellie, Charles Turner and Emmett Henderson were best for the Demons, with Gellie kicking three goals and Angus Moyle one.
The A grade netball saw Ararat register a 54-47 win.
Best for the Demons in the loss were Issy McLinden, Eliza O'Neil and Ella Sadler.
Ararat also took out the B grade game with a 40-31 win. Eliza Humphrey and Georgia Kerr were the best for the B grade Demons, with Bridgette Filbay shooting 16 goals and Lauren McLennan 12.
In C grade, Ararat scored a 25-11 win, with Simone Gellie and Jaime Murphy best for the Demons.
The 17 and under netball saw Lismore/Derrinallum score a 23-19 win.
Neave Thompson and Lacey Grundman were best for the Demons, with Thompson shooting 16 goals.
Lismore/Derrinallum recorded a 16-14 win in 15 and under netball.
Charlotte Henderson and Nina Birley were the Demons best, with Henderson shooting 12 goals.
The 13 and under game saw Lismore/Derrinallum score a 14-11 win.
Alirah Condie and Eliza Kerr were best for the junior Demons, with Alexis Henderson shooting eight goals.
Read More: Derrinallum, Lismore