Round 13 Match Reports (2026)

La Trobe University produced one of its more complete performances of the season at home, overcoming rivals Albert Park who defeated the Trobers in their most recent meeting. The win also aligned with the recognition of two of La Trobe’s regular stalwarts in Nathan Richardson and Hugo O’Callaghan who both played their 50^th game for the club.

With Richo winning the toss and selecting to kick with the advantageous breeze, the Trobers made the most of it with a 7.5 opening term. Brandon Grech snuck forward early to kick the first two of the match, before Austin Bennett opened his account to start what would be a big day for him. The Falcons kicked one into the wind  to interrupt momentum, before a bronzed Tate Spiteri returned into the side from his Euro-American tour to kick 2 goals in a row. Hugo O’Callaghan showed why he is such a valued member of the team, bravely standing under a high ball, which saw heavy collision and a nasty cut to the back of his head, however he carried on and produced another consistent performance. Aussie closed out the quarter with a further 2 goals of his own. La Trobe closed the quarter strongly through Aussie, Spitta, Will Barnes and Coach Andy Castles to lead 47-6 at the first change.

The second term saw a lone goal for Albert Park, accompanied by a flurry of behinds, with the visitors not able to take control of the wind, and La Trobe struggling to move the ball efficiently into it. This saw the half time scores at La Trobe 49 to Albert Park 19.

The third term saw the Trobers put their foot down, with Bennett adding a further 3 goals in the quarter, while Tirian Hillman kicked an instinctive one-stepper from outside the arc, adding his name to the scoresheet. Spitta finished another polished passage and Cal Randell also added a major to the scoreboard. La Trobe extended the margin beyond 70 points heading into the final quarter, leading 92-19.

The final term saw Albert Park respond with four goals with the wind, but La Trobe held steady through Aussie’s final 2 goals for the day in what was a dominant display down forward slotting 8.4. The final siren sounded with La Trobe convincing 107-43 winners, and will enjoy a week off with bye this weekend.