Football
18 June, 2025
Swifts defeat Kaniva in comeback win
The Swifts have solidified their position in the top five after beating Kaniva Leeor in a thrilling contest of men’s senior football in round nine of the Horsham District Football Netball League on Saturday.
The final score was Swifts 13.8 (86) to Kaniva Leeor 11.11 (77).
In a match dictated by strong wind, the Cougars took advantage to lead 22-13 after the first quarter, before a resurgent second quarter saw the Swifts take a five-point half-time lead (40-35).
The back-and-forth nature of the contest was on full display as Kaniva regained the lead in the third term, but a 40-point final quarter from the Swifts saw them take the lead midway through the final quarter, from which point they held on to finish as winners.
Brett Hargreaves, coach of Swifts, said some tactical decisions helped swing the game their way in the last quarter.
“We left our main on-ball brigade in there for basically the whole quarter,” Hargreaves said.
“Todd Matthews went down onto Jacob Eats in their forward line and he took several big contested marks, powered off the back, so that was pretty pivotal for us.”
For the victors, Angus Murray and Sean Mantell were the best players, with Murray igniting the Swifts’ comeback with an early goal in the fourth quarter.
For Kaniva, Hamish Bennett and Blake Dodson were among the best.
Jordan Motton led the Swifts with four goals, while Lochie Eats kicked five for Kaniva.
Hargreaves admitted that the game was crucial for the finals hopes and he was pleased to get the tight win.
“It was basically an elimination final for us yesterday because we're obviously on the same points,” Hargreaves said.
“We would have been out of the finals if we'd lost.
“Our team maybe matured a bit more.
“We’ve lost a few of these close ones so it’s probably the the first one in a long time that we’ve actually won.”
The result sees the Swifts rise to fourth on the ladder, while Kaniva remain in sixth.