Deakin Uni 2025 Season Review | Rowville

Back-to-back strong finals saw Rowville reach the Preliminary Final for the fourth consecutive year, while the Netball program bring home a premiership

Senior Men’s

Ladder Position: 4th (10-8, 123.79%)

Leading Goalkicker: Maverick Taylor

Summary:

An up-and-down Home and Away season for the Hawks finished with a strong performance in the finals, securing a fourth consecutive Preliminary Final.

Four wins in four rounds to start the year against strong opposition saw Rowville burst out of the blocks. That was followed by three losses in a row to Blackburn, Berwick, and Doncaster East, before a thumping 138-point win over the Tigers and a 29-point win over the undefeated Roos.

With key players out of the side throughout the season, Rowville’s season remained inconsistent. Their best footy is able to challenge anyone, but their worst placing the Hawks in danger of missing the finals altogether.

Making the finals, Rowville’s fourth-place finish saw the Hawks meet South Croydon in the Elimination Final. A back-and-forth, tight defensive battle, the Hawks held on for a seven-point win to advance to week two of the finals series.

A week later, the Hawks took on East Ringwood in the semi-final, where they dismantled the Roos by 61 points. It marked their third win over East Ringwood in season 2025.

Their season came to an end in the Preliminary Final after they were defeated by Blackburn by 50 points.

Best Win: Elimination Final – Rowville 9.9 63 def. South Croydon 8.8 56 @ Jubilee Park

A thrilling finals victory was a memorable one for the Hawks after defeating South Croydon by seven points at Jubilee Park.

There was nothing that could separate the two sides in the opening half, all tied up at 30 points each.

South Croydon kicked the opening three goals of the second half to break the game open. The Hawks managed to put themselves back in front in the early stages of the fourth quarter before an arm wrestle between the two sides.

Mitchell Sruk finished with 29 disposals, nine marks, and seven Rebound 50’s for the afternoon in a standout game. Tyler Edwards and Josh Clarke are also influential, combining for 48 disposals.

Key Players:

Josh Clarke had a career-best season with the Hawks, winning the club’s best and fairest award, finishing in the top three of the Chandler Medal, and a Team of the Year spot.

With key personnel out of the side, Clarke was crucial to the Hawks' success this year, averaging 25 disposals, 6 clearances, and 5 inside 50’s per game.

Mitchell Sruk finished Runner Up in the club’s best and fairest, playing all 21 games this season.

Ruckman Nick Schoenmakers is not far behind, another standout year for the Hawks.

Young defender Jesse Eickhoff continued to impress, playing a vital role in the Hawks' back six.

What’s Next?

Considering the outs throughout the season, Rowville did extremely well to progress all the way through to a Preliminary Final.

The Senior Men will open the 2026 season on Good Friday, clashing with South Belgrave.

Netball

Team by Team:

Division Seven – 1st (13-1)

Division Eight – 1st (12-1-1)

Rowville had a very successful season in the 2025 Ringwood Mazda Netball competition, finishing on top of the ladder in both Division Seven and Eight.

The Division Eight side went on to win the premiership after two strong finals performances against Coldstream. The Hawks won by six goals in the semi-final and 16 goals in the Grand Final. Tia Nicholson won the team’s club best and fairest award, while Nicola Tambakakis finished as the runner-up.

The Division Seven team also finished on top of the ladder, winning 13 of their 14 games. Unfortunately, they fell short in the finals series, with losses to Balwyn and then the Waverley Blues in the Preliminary Final.

The winner of the side’s best and fairest was Taya Hayes, scoring 247 goals for the year, while Marlee Diver finished as runner-up.