Yarra Valley Water 2025 Season Review | Donvale

By Christopher Kourtis.

Yet another chance gone begging - premiership glory eluded Donvale’s senior men’s side in another Grand Final, whilst the Senior Women’s team went through a season of rebuilding.

SENIOR MEN’S

Ladder Position: 1st, 15-3

Leading Goal Kicker: Ethan Duncan (58 goals)

Best and Fairest: Chris Tout

Summary:

A fourth Grand Final appearance in as many years, Donvale failed to earn promotion, losing by just two points.

With Surrey Park out of the picture in 2025, the Magpies went into the season as heavy premiership favourites. Starting off with five straight wins, the side’s first loss came in Round 6, when they lost to Silvan by one point.

Donvale beat every side that Division Three threw at them.

Boasting the league’s best offence and defence, they knocked off Knox in the Semi Final 2 by 37 points. It was not to be, however, as they left their push too late in the Grand Final, falling to newly promoted Scoresby by just two points.

Away from another frustrating senior season, Donvale showed plenty of success in its junior set-up once again. Their reserves side were crowned premiers, whilst the U19.5s fell short in the title decider.

Best win: Round 8: Donvale 17.10-112 def. 14.9-83 Scoresby @ Donvale Reserve

It was touted as the Grand Final preview, and indeed it was. All eyes in Division Three were on Donvale Reserve as Donvale hosted Scoresby, with both sides coming in at 6-1.

Donvale got off to a good start and was in control from then on, leading at all breaks. The home side kicked 6.0-36 in the second quarter, opening up a 37-point margin that would be enough to hold onto for the remainder of the game.

Leading goal kicker Ethan Duncan kicked seven goals, which was enough to earn him the best on ground honours for the day. Jonathan Vathakos was also a key contributor, putting up 25 disposals, 10 clearances and 10 tackles in a dominant display.

Key players:

Ethan Duncan was listed as a half-forward in the Division Three Team of the Year. Kicking 58 goals in sixteen games, Duncan led his club in the goal-kicking charts and ended up second in the league tally. The forward averaged 3.1 with seven score involvements per game.

Joining Duncan in the Team of the Year were teammates Nick Murphy and Harrison Giles. Both were listed in the full-forward line, with Murphy kicking 56 goals throughout the season, whilst Giles kicked 24 of his own, along with 19 disposals a game.

Chris Tout was another key contributor to this Donvale side. Earning best on votes in twelve of his nineteen games, Tout’s ten contested possessions a game earned him the club Best and Fairest award.

What’s next?

Donvale needs to find a way to round out its squad.

Whether they recruit externally or promote players from their talented reserves and U19.5s, it is imperative that they find a way to continuye to add depth ahead of season 2026.

To state the obvious, they also need to find a way to get across the final hurdle on Grand Final Day. Whether it be mental or tactical, nothing that Donvale do throughout the season will mean anything if they fall short at the final hurdle again.

SENIOR WOMEN’S

Ladder position: 6th, 3-11

Leading goal kicker: Teagan Bradley (9 goals)

Best and Fairest: Jess Crundall

Summary:

Donvale’s senior women’s side battled hard in 2025, looking to recover from some key list changes in the off-season and a run of injuries.

Despite finishing top of Division One the year before, the tables were turned in 2025 as the Magpies finished last.

Winless until Round 10, Donvale managed to pick up a big win against Surrey Park before ending the season on a two-game win streak, beating Knox and Balwyn respectively.

A great finish to the season, particularly considering their wins came against finals sides.

Best win: Round 10: Donvale 9.8-62 def. 3.6-24 Surrey Park @ Donvale Reserve

Round 10 showed that there was light at the end of the tunnel for the Magpies.

Winless in the first half of the season, the Magpies put together a massive performance to beat a third-placed Surrey Park side by 38 points. Behind at Half Time, Donvale rallied with a whopping 52-1 performance in the second half to storm home with the win.

Grace Hartman was voted best on ground with a three-goal performance, whilst Mia Van Oosterwijck chimed in with three of her own.

The win was proof that this team could match it with the best and was working in the right direction.  

Key players:

Mia Van Oosterwijck was yet again a key part of this Donvale side. Amongst the best on votes in eight out of eleven games, Van Oosterwijck was listed in the Division One Team of the Year as a winger. Her consistency throughout the season also put her as runner-up in the club's Best and Fairest count.

Grace Hartman and Nekaela Butler were listed on the Team of the Year interchange. Hartman (five times in best) and Butler (seven times in best) were both testament to the strength that this Magpies side can build on in seasons to come.

Jess Crundall won the club's Best and Fairest award, earning best on votes in six different occasions.

What’s next?

Donvale’s Senior Women’s side will look to continue to build ahead of season 2026.

The team struggled to deal with some key departures last season and key players missing due to injury, making it all the more important that they not only retain their current list but also improve on it by bringing in some recruits.

NETBALL:

Team by Team:

Donvale Green (Premier Division):

The Magpies returned to the Ringwood Mazda Netball competition in 2025, having three sides compete for the club.

Donvale’s top netball side, finished last with just one win. They managed to get the best of Coldstream by two goals in Round 11 and were led by Grace Hartman’s 169-goal season.

Donvale White (Division Five):

The White side managed four wins in season 2025, earning themselves a sixth-placed finish. Chloe Brown was the headline act for the Magpies, winning the league's Best and Fairest award.

Donvale Black (Division Five):

The second of the Division Five sides, Donvale Black, finished bottom of the division. They picked one up win, which was a big upset against Glen Waverley in Round 5, winning by four goals.