ESSENDON
Play-off finals are decided by inches.
Bayside Argonauts prevailed 1-0 at Lakeside Stadium to claim the last promotion place into VPL Men 1, Andy Brennan’s 79th-minute strike settling a tense, tight contest under a warm September sun. The Argonauts go up for the fourth year in a row. The Royals finish the season agonisingly short of the second tier, in a game that had its share of contentious moments and never had more than one goal in it.
Bayside had the better of the first half and it would be dishonest to pretend otherwise. They forced eight corners before the break, William Cardona’s delivery caused problems every time, and Andre Russo had to be at his best twice, coming out to smother Mitch Cooper one on one in the sixth minute after Bayside cut through on the counter, and getting down to hold another Cooper effort five minutes before the break. Phillip Riccobene threw himself in front of Brennan’s best chance, and after halftime Brad Norton took a Rai Pinto shot flush in the face to keep another out. The Royals had their moments too, Anthony Trajkoski fizzing a low ball across the six-yard box in the 12th minute that Marcus Kotronis could not quite reach, and Dean Clarke leading a spell of pressure in first-half stoppage time that had Bayside scrambling.
Cardona was booked in the 30th minute for pulling Clarke down after Frank Mulhern’s flick had sent the captain away, the first of five cautions on the afternoon. Vince Lia followed two minutes later for a committed challenge on Pinto, and Kotronis, Clarke and Riccobene would join him in the book in the second half.
The Royals came out after the break with more purpose, and Kotronis had the best look either side had all game inside the first minute of the half, played through with the goal opening up before Pinto slid in to block. From the corner that followed, the ball struck Sung Si-woo inside his own six-yard box and the Royals appealed for a penalty, but to no avail. On the hour, Kotronis was driving towards goal on the break when Cardona, already on a yellow, shoved him in the back, and the free kick was given without a second booking. Royals supporters had plenty to say about both moments.
What did change the afternoon was a loss the crowd never saw. Adrian Zahra, whose penalty sent the Royals to this final a week earlier and whose impact off the bench against Keilor Park had prompted talk of a start, was injured warming up at half time and took no further part. With the game begging for fresh legs and something different in the front third, Mick Ferrante had one less card to play.
Brennan’s goal, when it came, was spectacular. The 33-year-old collected the ball near halfway, twisted and turned past Takumi Niwa, carried it to the edge of the area and found the bottom corner from a long way out. He had been Bayside’s most dangerous player all afternoon and he took the moment when it arrived.
The Royals threw everything at the last eleven minutes. Clarke thumped one over, Ferrante followed the introduction of Josh Markovski by sending on Christian Pollifrone and going to three at the back, and in the 89th minute it looked like it had worked. A Bayside clearance ricocheted off Pollifrone and fell to Markovski, who finished, but Pollifrone’s block was ruled a handball. Seven minutes of stoppage time brought a Mulhern free kick, a Brennan block, and the final whistle.
Sixty-three goals in the regular season, fifteen wins from the last nineteen rounds, a comeback and a shootout to get here, and it ends one goal short. Bayside are a well-organised side who earned their clean sheet under pressure and deserve their promotion. The Royals will be back in VPL2 next season having shown all year that they belong higher, and a season that produced this much football deserves to be remembered for more than its final afternoon.
The club thanks every supporter who made the trip to Lakeside and filled the grandstand side with red. We go again in 2027.