By james art 
Plenty of promise shown by the Eagles senior men and women in 2024 as the netball program added two more premierships to the Vermont Recreation Reserve cabinet
Ladder Position: 4th (12-6, 115.91%)
Leading Goalkeeper: Daniel Nilsson (40 goals in 16 games)
Best and Fairest: Lachlan Johns
Another finals appearance for the Eagles men’s team in 2024, this time in the first week of the finals.
After a shaky 0-3 start, the Eagles hit back and lost just three more times after that, taking the scalps of the likes of Balwyn and South Croydon twice in that time.
They would face the Bulldogs in what would be their only final, going down by 10 points in a tense and windy affair at Jubilee Park.
It has been another stellar season for former Eagles captain Lachlan Johns. Taking home another B&F club award and becoming Team of the Year, Johns averaged more than 26 disposals and 14 contested possessions, along with just under 7 appearances per game.
He was joined in the team by vice-captain James Ross, who had the second highest one percent this season while averaging just over 10 disposals per game.
The pair of Locklan, Jenkins and Dixon, along with Calvin Darayo also provided solid support for Johns in the middle of defense and Ross in defense, with Darayo averaging more than 20 disposals and 3.8 tackle 50s per game.
Best win: Round 15 – Vermont 15/12/102 beat South Croydon 10/5/65 @ Cheong Park
Honorable mention to their Round 11 win at Balwyn, but it was one of Vermont’s most complete performances of the season.
Despite losing two rotations by halftime, including Lachie Johns, the Eagles beat the Bulldogs in the second half to move one step closer to the final.
Daniel Nilsson had one of his best games in the purple and gold. Kicking six goals for the game, Nielsen also had 19 disposals, nine marks, eight contested and 11 goals.
Loclan Jenkins was also solid in the midfield in Johns’ absence, collecting 33 disposals, while Dixon had 23 disposals, six inside 50s and six tackle 50s.
Some big moves have happened for the Eagles this offseason so far. This includes a new head coach in Matt Adolph, who replaces club champion Adam Parker.
Adolph is joined by former Mooroolbark coach Brett Lavars, while ex-Premier League coach David Banfield has also returned to Terrara Road as the new high performance manager.
There are also some familiar names returning to Vermont, including Liam Vale-Buxton after several dominant seasons in the Northern and Mornington Peninsula leagues.
Sam Wideman also returned to his junior club, bringing with him 150 games of AFL and VFL experience with Melbourne and Essendon over the past eight years.
Although they lost a few, including South Belgrave’s Calvin Darayo, things look promising for Vermont ahead of 2025.
Ladder position: 5th (6-8, 73.08%)
Leading Goalkeeper: Madison Busano (20 goals in 14 games)
Best and Fairest: Morgan Pay
It was a tale of two halves for the Eagles last season as they fell one game short of reaching the finals in a very even Premier Division.
With a new coach and quite a bit of roster turnover, the Eagles got off to a slow start before picking up some momentum in the latter half of the season.
In the second half of the season, their only three losses came against Whitehorse, the Eastern Devils and future premiers South Croydon, with a loss to the latter ending their season.
There were a number of contributors for the Eagles last year, including B&F winner Morgan Pay. Named the best on 10 of 12 occasions, Pei’s season saw her named Team of the Year.
She was joined as captain of that team by Ciara Reid, who was named man of the match on nine occasions, all in the last 11 rounds of the season.
Holly Cullen also had a consistent season along with Madison Busano, with the latter winning Vermont’s hitting award and the former being named the best eight times.
Best win: Round 12 – Vermont 3.11.29 beat South Belgrave 1.4.10 @ Belgrave South Recreation Reserve
It’s hard to separate that win and their Round 13 win against Whitehorse, but I’m going with this one on the road against the Saints.
Just needing to keep winning to stay in the finals hunt, the Eagles did just that in tough conditions under lights at Belgrave South.
Leading the charge was Bianca Clarke who was named best on ground, with Ciara Reid also having a stellar performance once again.
Chelsea Pay and Holly Cullen also provided solid support, while Reid, Madison Busano and Lily Bunning scored all three goals for Vermont.
Little movement for the Eagles women’s team so far this offseason, focusing more on re-signing their roster.
Among the re-signings is that of Chris Clark, who did a great job nearly leading Vermont to the finals last season.
Casey Demons star Casey Phillips has named Vermont as his community after having VAFA club Old Yarra Cobras as his community club last season. Natasha Tenney has also joined Division One club Donvale.
Throw in a few more pieces and the Eagles will no doubt be challenging sides again, having done so for a good chunk of 2024.
Vermont Eagles Gold (Higher Division): 6th (2-10, 69.63%)
Vermont Eagles White (Division 2): 4th (8-4, 126.79%)
Vermont Eagles Purple (Division 3): 8th (2-10, 75.64%)
Vermont Eagles Violet (Division 5): 5th (7-5, 118.64%)
Vermont Eagles Lavender (Division 6): 1st (12-0, 190.68%)
Vermont Eagles Lilac (Division 7): 4th (9-4, 125.46%)
Vermont Eagles Black (Division 8): 3rd (10-3, 140.28%)
Vermont Eagles Yellow (Division 9): 4th (9-4, 121.56%)
Vermont Eagles Gold (Summer Netball Division 1): 6th (1-9, 58.96%)
Vermont Eagles Purple (Summer Netball Division 2): 2nd (7-2, 127.18%)
Another massive season for Vermont’s netball program, with eight sides taking the court in the winter netball competition along with two more in the 2023/24 summer netball competition.
Five of those eight teams in the New Balance Netball Competition, with the Division 9 side the only team from Vermont to make and win their grand final against Chirnside Park.
The Eagles Summer Netball Division 2 side also previously won the premiership, defeating Montrose in the decider.
On an individual basis, Erin Hinson took home Division 7’s best and fairest on the night for the Chandler Medal.
Ashlyn Bear and Grace Hartman also picked up the leading scorer awards in Division 7 and 2 respectively.