All sides in contention at season’s half time

by JOSH HUNTLY
7th July 2025

AT THE HALFWAY mark of the season, Warrandyte Football Netball Club has all six of its teams eyeing finals.
And led by what may have been a season-defining run from the Senior Bloods as they completely flipped the script on Season 2025.
A resurgent Bloods have gone from 0–4 to 6–4, perched two games inside the top four with six games to play after critical wins against fellow finals contenders Whitehorse and Kilsyth.
Their three-point heist at Springfield Park stands as the best of Warrandyte’s trio of June wins, inspired by Josh Meyers, who stood in as Skipper in the absence of the injured Oscar Hodgson.
The Bloods also saw club Junior and Northern Knights star Gabriel Stumpf at Senior level for the first time and, unsurprisingly, he was influential in an arm wrestle against the Whitehorse Pioneers alongside defenders Zak Carroll, Nick De Preu, and Noah Habjan.
A 59–49 lead at the final change expanded to 19 with mere minutes to play, but nerves were jangled as Whitehorse made a final lunge, Warrandyte just holding on in a thriller.
Back at Warrandyte Reserve against Kilsyth, who had bested the Bloods by 50 points in their last bout and usurped the Pioneers in second, the revival continued.
The home side took until the second half to get into gear, trailing by 11 points at half-time, but Warrandyte returned hungrier and cleaner with the ball, led by its latest stand-in skipper, Josh Appleby, with three goals.
Meyers again put in a good shift with two goals, while Nick Sharpe and Chris McDonald marked their return to the Seniors with a mention in the best as the Bloods kicked away to a 16-point win in front of a vocal Bloods cohort in the famed Warrandyte Road pocket.
Warrandyte then capped off its month of footy with a strong 75-point win over bottom-placed Forest Hill, Mitch Wilson booting four goals and experienced heads Alex Simpson and Luke Shelton keeping the Bloods train rolling.

Reserves

Meanwhile, the Reserves have also set a hot pace.
The Bloods have gone eight games without tasting defeat, sitting a game clear on top of the ladder at the time of writing with an average winning margin of more than 100 points throughout June.
Michael Cullum returned from injury with a point to prove and was one of Warrandyte’s best, while Tim Caldwell and Luke Saunders have also been instrumental in tandem with the forward trio of Jarrah Aitken, Noah Kendal, and Ben Ogilvie.
Under-19s
The Under-19s are in fourth place, with an undermanned outing against ladder-leading Bulleen-Templestowe being the only blemish, sandwiched between two triple-figure victories.
Angus Boell, Bailey Elam, and Jack Grybas have helped lead the charge.

Women

The Senior Women, also fourth, hold a 4–4 record after a promising month.
Alice Garwoli and Maddy Trewella booted 11 goals between them in a big win over Nunawading before crafting a solid first half against Wantirna South in a 23-point loss.

EFNL Netball

On the courts, both Warrandyte teams are perched in second position.
Warrandyte Red tasted its first defeat at the hands of Vermont but kept the good times rolling with a two-goal win over Norwood and an eight-goal result over Upper Ferntree Gully on the back of some good form from Em Ransom and Jorja Carty.
Warrandyte White dialled up the pressure with big wins against Waverley (49:19) and Upper Ferntree Gully (58:23), before going down in a tight contest against Heathmont.

Vale John Ryan

Warrandyte Football Club lost a key piece of its famous Ryan family history with the recent passing of the beloved John.
Ryan, a player from 1968 to 1973 and a decades-long contributor who provided rich service to the club in many roles and committees, passed away on June 12, sparking an outpouring of tributes.
“John played for the Bloods in the 60s and 70s, and then spent many years on committees, plus helping out around the Club,” a Warrandyte Football Club spokesperson said.
“He dedicated decades of service to the Bloods, and this only diminished in later years due to ill health.
“Even given his health problems he was still a regular at home games and Thursday night meals/selection.
“John, alongside his wife Julie, son Terry, and daughter-in-law Lisa, are all Life Members.
“Back in his working days, who will ever forget the windscreen of his Land Cruiser full of sticky notes — no mobile phones or Google calendars in those days.
“RIP John Ryan, forever a true mate and great friend of those at the Bloods,” they said.