Hatherleigh v Kalangadoo
Amisty rain and a bitterly cold breeze greeted players at Hatherleigh as both teams started with high physical intensity.
Jayde Peacock at Wing Attack for Kalangadoo put her body on the line while Ebony McDiarmid had her eye in early, shooting 11 straight at Goal Shooter for Kalangadoo before missing.
Both Lauren Kain and Lara Munro made it difficult for Erin Watson and Rosie Nettle to get the ball into their attack line, getting their hands to the ball and rebounding strongly to enter the beak with a 10-goal lead.
Hatherleigh made one change with Maddie Redman coming into Goal Keeper. Maddie had an immediate impact combining well with Lara MacGregor at Goal Defence getting intercepts to peg back the lead.
The increased defensive pressure from Tegan Telfer, Watson and MacGregor in the mid court appeared to rattle Kalangadoo who made some uncharacteristic passes intercepted by the Eagles.
Maddie Pulmer and Demi Vanderhorst had plenty of opportunities, being well fed by Nettle, but were not able to convert on the scoreboard.
At the other end McDiarmid continued to shoot with accuracy with another 8 goals and no misses.
Hatherleigh outscored Kalangadoo by two goals but it could have been more if they’d been able to land more shots, with the Magpies entering the main break with an eight goal lead.
Changes from Hatherleigh saw Nettle off, Telfer move into Wing Attack, Elly Redden back on at Goal Defence and MacGregor into Wing Defence. However it was the unchanged Kalangadoo that started the quarter with a bang.
Jane Auld at Centre was having a great tussle with Watson and started to get the upper hand.
Chloe Peacock also hit her straps at Wing Defence to curb the influence of Telfer.
Abbey Duncan was moving well in the circle with McDiarmid to ensure the star shooter got plenty of the ball, despite the efforts of Redden and Redman.
A handy 15 from 18 attempts saw Kalangadoo start to run away with the game with a comfortable 15 goal lead going into the last.
To start the final term it was more changes from Hatherleigh with Nettle back on at Wing Attack, Telfer moved back into Wing Defence and MacGregor off – while Kalangadoo stuck to their starting line-up.
The physicality with which both teams started the game with continued, with Pulmer and Vanderhorst feeling it from Kain and Munro.
Telfer ran hard and stood strong against Peacock, while Watson tried valiantly to stop Auld.
Despite the best efforts of Redman and Redden, McDiarmid still had plenty of opportunities to score and did not let her team down, shooting 15 straight to end with a game high 18 for the term and help the Magpies secure victory.
Glencoe v Tantanoola
Glencoe and Tantanoola faced off with a potential top two position on the line. The Murphies were without goalie Jenna Paproth and relied on the experience of Laura Childs to fill her role.
Glencoe took the first centre pass and was immediately met by strong physicality from the Tiger outfit. The pressure caused an early missed shot and rebound opportunity for Tayla Rowe who capitalised and gave Tantanoola an early buffer.
From here on in, time in possession was fairly even with both mid courts working hard to get the ball to circle edge and deliver to their goalies.
Sarah Edwards and Chelsea Owen worked overtime in the Glencoe defensive end to not allow Emma Gould or Keryl Ousey any easy ball under the post – despite the height mismatch.
However, the range of shot did not seem to be a problem for Ousey and her long-range accuracy provided a relief from the Murphie defensive pressure.
The second quarter was run by the defensive ends and resulted in a low scoring quarter. Owen was wearing Ousey like a glove which allowed Edwards to have a fly at some balls down the court.
The aerial ability from Owen and speed of Edwards began to mount pressure on the Tantanoola feeders in Jami Walker and Kate Varcoe as any feed that was not pin point resulted in a turnover.
Down the other end the defensive combination of Rowe, Kate Bromley and Casey Walker continued to apply body and intense hands over pressure.
The Glencoe mid court combination of Donna Jaeschke and Alice Tentye had to work patiently to find a safe entry.
Heading into the second half the Tigers swapped Gould back to Goal Shooter and Ousey out to Goal Attack. The Murphies remained unchanged but entered the second half with an intent to turn the score in their favour.
Glencoe showed its class with each player getting the better of their opponent. Cocks and Childs worked in unison to find some easier ball under the post. The playmaking ability from Childs and strong front cutting began to work wonders and opened up Cocks at the post, where she was able to take majority of the shooting workload.
Tentye and Jaeschke increased their workload and drove with intent, while in defence, Edwards and Owen continued to dominate and make life hard for the Tantanoola attack with intercepts aplenty as well as taking majority of the rebounds.
The tussle between Chloe Pfitzner and J Walker was intriguing with both players getting the upper hand throughout the game.
Pfitzner began to reap the rewards of her early blocking work to gain some important intercept ball in the third.
The Tantanoola side was unable to match the Glencoe intensity and entered the final break with a five-goal deficit.
The final quarter was intense from the start, with both teams wanting to secure a top two position. Gould and Ousey returned to their starting positions and Bromley and Rowe swapped bibs. Bromley worked hard to confuse the space for Cocks and put pressure on the pass from the circle, while Rowe utilised her long arms to attempt to gain some deflections.
Despite drawing some whistle, Rowe stuck to this gameplan and got some crucial turnover ball. Edwards, Owen and Pfitzner continued to apply pressure to the Tantanoola attack line and get some important touches.
J Walker stepped up in the final quarter, working early on her prelims to find space and feed with an increased patience.
With around five minutes to go the Murphies still held the five-goal lead but a timely missed shot and a few errand passes let Tantanoola back into the game.
With the game on the line for both sides the play got scrappy with everyone putting their body on the line.
The Glencoe side showed maturity to keep their cool in the loud final minutes and hold on to a one goal lead, winning the game 36 to the Tigers’ 35.
Robe v Mount Burr
Mount Burr came out with a solid start, moving the ball well in its attack, with goalies Ebony Clark and Lauren Wheeler shooting with confidence, while Robe took the first half to find their feet.
Once they settled, Tori Gluyas shot with accuracy while Robe’s Lucy Perkins moved and directed her teammates well with both teams on 12 at quarter time.
Mount Burr’s defensive pressure in the ring by Madi Haggett and Olivia Dean made it hard for Robe’s goalies and picked off a few turnovers in the second term.
With Laura Schultz’ run down the court, they transitioned the ball with ease into the goal circle.
The last five minutes of the quarter Robe stepped up its defensive pressure in the ring and Emma Grant started to rebound and pick off a few passes with Robe winning the quarter by two goals, the score being 24 to 22 at half time.
Both teams made changes at half time, with Mount Burr’s Goal Attack Wheeler changing with Ashlee Dean. Robe’s Ellen Ramke came on at Wing Defence, while Halle Carter went to Goal Attack and Tori Gluyas took the bench.
Robe stepped it up a gear in the third, with better defensive pressure down the court, they took a few chances and backed each other up, while Demi Carter found her confidence and shot 11 goals for the quarter.
Mount Burr struggled in its attack line with the pressure of Grant and Georgia Perkins in the circle and the Roosters ran out the quarter with a 39 to 30 lead at the final break.
The last quarter once again saw no changes and Mount Burr came out fighting hard for the win, however Robe remained calm and made sure they scored their goals.
Mount Burr’s Ebony Clark shot with accuracy – shooting 7 from 7 for the quarter, however, this was not enough to get them over the line with Robe coming away winners 50 to 41.
Kongorong v Nangwarry
Nangwarry tackled the young Hawks at home in cold and windy conditions, with Kongorong getting off the line early ttoo score the first three goals of the game, moving the ball quickly and with accuracy.
Nangwarry took a while to settle with the ball and had limited attempts in the first quarter with Kongorong intense defensive pressure lead by Riley Buckingham in Goal Defence.
Claire Ferguson led for the Saints through the middle, tussling with the Hawks Rach Perry, giving her side some speed and carry.
Evie Sealey shots 9 from 11 for the quarter to help the Hawks gain a 12-goal lead on Nangwarry at quarter time.
Nangwarry had work to do in the second quarter so they swung Cassie Dinnison and Hayley Vanderhorst, with Dinnison back in goals which saw much more movement and speed coming from the Saints attack end.
Unfortunately for them Buckingham was well supported by Emily Lightbody and Ebony Lawson and the defensive pressure did not back off.
Down the other end Kayla Gray and Carly Ploenges were working overtime for Nangwarry to try limit the Hawks’ scoring opportunities.
They were able to limit the damage to four this quarter giving the Hawks a 16-goal lead heading into half time.
The wind pick up in the third term and the Hawks became complacent, producing a much more even contest across the court.
Gray and Ploenges took advantage of every missed opportunity by the Kongorong goalies, giving their attack line plenty of opportunity.
Ferguson took charge in attack, feeding accurately into Dinnison and Tahlia Wilson who converted their highest scoring quarter for the game.
Even with the increased ball into attack, Kongorong looked dangerous at times, causing multiple held balls for the quarter with the Hawks up 33 to 16.
Kongorong switch on in the final stanza, with Buckingham and Sealey pushing hard and connecting well to lead their team to outscore the Saints 13 to 1.
Ploenges contested well with Gray snapping up any rebound, but any ball sent down the Saints attack end was scooped up by the Hawks defence either through transition or by the strong rebounding of Lightbody.
Ferguson and Perry continued in a strong contest throughout the game, both at times being influential for their sides.
Kongorong was able to run out winners in the wind with the final score Kongorong 46 to Nangwarry 17.
