Eastland 2025 Season Review | Vermont

By Christopher Kourtis.

Vermont Football Netball Club had a terrific season. Whilst their top football sides struggled at times, their development side and multiple netball teams had premiership glory in 2025. 

SENIOR MEN’S

Summary:

Ladder position: 7^th, 8-10

Leading goal kicker: Sam Weideman (29 goals)

Best and Fairest: Lachie Johns

An injury-interrupted season saw Vermont cut adrift from finals contention. 

The side struggled to field a consistent line-up. A top-heavy list, the Eagles were missing their best throughout key points of the season. Ex-AFL forward Sam Weideman played fourteen games for the side, whilst eight-time club Best and Fairest winner Lachie Johns (13) and polarising ruck Buxton (7) only combined for twenty games between them. 

Vermont started off with a blazing Round One clash against Mitcham, where Sam Weideman’s seven-goal haul got his side over the line in an amazing comeback win. Starting off strongly, the side was 4-2 after Round Six. 

Over the next eight weeks, the Eagles managed just the one win, coming in Round 10 against Mitcham. They turned things around by beating a strong South Croydon side by eight points. 

In the end, a seventh-placed finish was a fair reflection of the year, the Eagles handling the sides below them, but were unable to contend consistently with the top sides. Although key injuries played a massive role in the season’s outcome, there's plenty of room for improvement going forward. 

Best Win: Round One - Mitcham 12.16-88 def. by Vermont 15.8-98 @ Walker Park

An old rivalry reignited after nearly two decades, the wait was well worth it for a game of this quality. 

Mitcham came firing out of the blocks quickly and held leads at each of the first three breaks. The Tigers looked ready to stamp their mark on their new division, up nineteen points at three-quarter time. 

Despite Mitcham’s early opportunities to kill the game off, they failed to convert. The door was still open, allowing for one of the most dominant fourth quarter charges seen all season.

Vermont kicked seven of the last nine scores of the game in a quarter where everything came up Sam Weideman. The star forward, on debut, kicked four goals in the last quarter to go along with the game-sealing assist to Kye Barlow. Weideman finished the game with seven goals, twenty disposals, twelve marks and the best on ground honours.

Lachie Johns polled a whopping 38 disposals (23 contested) and twelve clearances. The midfielder was helped by Tyson Calder’s 27 disposal game. 

Key players:

Lachie Johns had another stellar season, winning his eighth club Best and Fairest award. The midfielder kicked eleven goals and earned best on votes in nine of his thirteen games. Listed on the Team of the Year interchange, Johns averaged 31 disposals (fourteen contested) and eight clearances a game. 

Captain James Ross was fantastic all season in 2025. Ross was asked to do just about anything – from playing off the backline, to going into the midfield to even putting in a shift at ruck every now and then. He averaged fifteen disposals and seven intercept possessions a game, amongst the best eight times throughout the season. 

Matthew Willcocks was another stalwart for the Eagles. The defender averaged fourteen disposals and six intercepts a game. 

What’s next?

Vermont need to bring in a few more names to help their stars or see improvement from within to return to the finals. If they go into another season just relying on Ross, Johns, Weideman and Buxton, then they will struggle – with or without injuries. 

They’ve already announcied the signings of Harry Isaacs and Ayhan Bajramov. The pair join from Heathmont and, despite making the jump from Division Two, have shown enough to suggest that they won’t look out of place at Vermont Recreation Reserve. 

SENIOR WOMEN’S

Summary – Premier Division:

Ladder position: 6^th, 5-9

Leading Goal Kicker: Annie Chamberlain (11 goals)

Best and Fairest: Molly Paterson

Vermont’s Premier Division Women’s side had a similar year to the Senior Men's campaign, finishing sixth on the ladder,

The side beat those below them comfortably and competed well against the top teams of the division despite not getting the ultimate result.

Their first win came against The Basin in Round Five, winning by 37 points. Their only win against an opponent above them came in Round 10, where they beat Boronia by six points. 

Best win: Round 10: Boronia 4.5-29 def. by Vermont 5.5-35 @ Tormore Reserve

This clash was the only time that Vermont managed to pick up an upset win. 

The Eagles led at all breaks but weren’t home safe until the final siren. The biggest lead at a break was at three-quarter time, where the visitors led by thirteen points. 

Despite only scoring one point in the final term, Vermont still did enough to hold on and pick up the one-goal win. 

Madison Clarke led the way with three goals, while Madeline Johns was voted best on ground. 

Key players: 

Molly Paterson was the side’s Best and Fairest. She boasted an equal league high twelve times in best, despite playing two games less than the others. Paterson was rightfully listed in the Team of the Year as a follower. 

It wasn’t just a one-player show though. Madeline Johns was voted best on in eight out of eleven games, while Annie Chamberlain (eleven times) and Madison Buszano (ten times) were frequently amongst the votes too. Chamberlain was the side’s leading goal kicker, booting eleven goals. 

What’s next?

The Premier Division side will be up for the challenge next season in what is likely to be even more of a difficult division with the inclusion of North Ringwood.

They have a strong core to build around; they just need to round out their list. They do have the option of promoting from their development side, who were crowned premiers of Division Four. This is something they have been able to do this year to great success.

Overall Vermont are in a strong position moving forward.

Summary – Division Four:

Ladder position: 3^rd, 9-2

Leading goal kicker: Madison Clarke (13 goals)

Best and Fairest: Sarah Salpietro 

Premiers of Division Four, Vermont’s development side earned promotion into Division Three for the 2026 season. 

The Eagles were 3-0 after Round Four, having only conceded one game in their season opener against Heathmont. The side would go on to hold their opponents to single digit scores in six of their eleven games. 

In Round Nine, Vermont became the only team to beat Bayswater in the home-and-away season. The only team that they didn’t beat, in fact, was second-placed Wantirna South. 

The Eagles started off their finals series strongly, beating Warrandyte by 21 points. They followed that up with a Preliminary Final smashing of Bayswater, before grinding out a three-point win in an incredibly tight Grand Final. 

Best win: Grand Final: Wantirna South 2.2-14 def. by 2.5-17 Vermont Gold @ HE Parker Reserve

There were a lot of big wins throughout the season, but this Grand Final took the cake. It wasn’t their biggest margin, but it was certainly their most monumental victory. 

Both sides played out a goalless first quarter. The largest lead at any in-game break was three points, when Vermont led 13 to 16 at three-quarter time. 

The game stayed incredibly tight as Vermont looked to shut down any ball movement from their opponents. Both sides could only manage a point each in the final term, meaning the Eagles walked out three-point victors. 

It was their first time beating Wantirna South all season, and what a time to do it. Sarah Salpietro was awarded the Best on Ground medal, and just like that, Vermont were into Division Three.

Key players:

Sarah Salpietro was the marquee player of this Vermont side. Amongst the best on votes nine times in eleven games, Salpietro was the Grand Final Best on Ground. She added to this accolade with a club Best and Fairest award, as well as a listing in the Team of the Year as a follower.

Also in the Team of the Year was midfielder Marissa Lee, half-back Maddi Da Silveira and forward Madison Clarke. Clarke led the side’s attack, kicking thirteen goals in eight games. 

Steve White was listed as the Team of the Year head coach. White’s management of his team will hold them in good stead as they go up a division.

NETBALL

Team-by-Team:

Vermont Gold (Premier Division):

Vermont’s top netball side finished with an even six wins and six losses. They beat a second-placed East Ringwood side in Round Seven, setting up a fourth-placed finish. Despite beating Norwood in the Semi Final by six goals, they lost to the same East Ringwood side a week later, bringing their season to an end. Cassandra Mccallum led the side with 282 goals. 

Vermont Purple (Division Three):

The Purple side were crowned premiers of Division Three. Finishing first with twelve wins, the finals started off with a surprise three-goal loss to Kilsyth. Vermont bounced back though, beating Park Orchards in the Preliminary Final before getting their revenge on Kilsyth in the Grand Final, winning by nine goals. Ella Morse scored 273 goals for the season, winning the Division Three Best and Fairest award.  

Vermont Violet (Division Five):

The Violet side were also premiers of their division. The side finished a perfect 14-0, going through the whole regular season undefeated. They beat Glen Waverley in Semi Final 2, before meeting the Hawks again in the Grand Final. Vermont won again, signing off on a spotless campaign.

Vermont Lavendar (Division Six):

Vermont Lavendar won the Division Six premiership. The side played their first three games in Division Seven, before being promoted mid-season. Going an undefeated 13-1-0, the Lavendar side beat Warrandyte in Semi Final 2 before picking up a sixteen-goal win against Chirnside Park in the Grand Final. 

Vermont Black (Division Eight):

The Black side finished third on the ladder with eleven wins but failed to beat the sides above them. Despite this, they picked up a Semi Final win against East Ringwood by a whopping seventeen goals, before losing to Coldstream in the Preliminary Final. Jasmine Mielke ranked second in the league for goal scoring, putting up 307 for the season. 

Vermont Yellow (Division Nine):

Vermont’s Division Nine side finished fifth, just one win adrift from finals. Their six wins were just short of what was needed to extend their season. 

Vermont Lilac (Division Eleven):

Vermont Lilac struggled throughout the season, only managing one win. That win came in Round One against the Waverley Blues, where the eight-placed side won by eleven goals. 

Vermont White (Division Twelve):

Vermont’s White side came agonisingly short of premiership glory. Finishing with twelve wins, the side were second only due to an inferior percentage. In Semi Final 2, they lost to Fairpark by sixteen goals. After a Preliminary Final forfeit from their opponents, the rematch was set for Grand Final day. It wasn’t to be however, as the side fell short to Fairpark again. Kayla Nealy was awarded the league Best and Fairest award, scoring 193 goals.