A review of the Section 5-8 grand finals at Parade College last Friday night.
Section 5 Grand Final – Thomastown 1 vs North Heidelberg 4
Thomastown was awarded the Section 5 premiership, keeping North Heidelberg at bay as they took home a five-goal win.
Trailing by two goals early on, Thomastown made big moves in their defensive end to get possession on the ball and work towards their attacking third.
Rising up from behind, the Bears worked collectively to keep the netball at their end of the court, providing their shooters with chances for scoring, taking the lead by two goals.
The second quarter tightened even more. North Heidelberg started off with a bang. GS Jess Smyth scored two goals in the opening minutes and tied the game at 8-all.
Coming back in front the defensive work by North Heidelberg GD Megan Berger and GK Sheridan Seekamp almost forced a held ball doing all they can to stop the Bears from putting up a goal.
North Heidelberg edged in front again but their hard efforts couldn’t keep their opponents out as Thomastown were quick to match their scores and sit equal with their opposition.
Sticking tight around the court, players fought it out to the half time siren. North Heidelberg, having scored off a free shot sat two up on the Bears, but as the finals seconds tick down Thomastown GA Lauren O’Rourke was fed the ball and managed to score.
Back to being a goal down, the Bears took to the second half with the first centre pass, tying scores right off the bat. The girls used this quarter to settle into a lead, with mid court players Lauren Newstead and Brooke Chadwick feeding in cleanly to Thomastown’s shooters.
Looking to extend on their four-goal advantage the Bears hit the final quarter with a long bomb hitting nothing but net from GA O’Rourke.
North Heidelberg was determined to make a comeback and did all they could move closer to Thomastown’s score. Time was against them however and the Bears efforts gave them a lead that couldn’t be caught, sealing them a grand final win.
The best on court medallion went to Lauren O’Rourke from Thomastown for her shooting efforts.
Final score: Thomastown 1 (23) def North Heidelberg 4 (18)
Section 6 Grand Final – Hurstbridge 1 vs Thomastown 2
Section 6 premiership winners Hurstbridge 1 came out the gates firing to convincingly beat Thomastown 2.
Throughout the game Hurstbridge sat at a distance from their opponent, but it was in the second half of the game where the team blitzed the competition and landed themselves a 15-goal win.
Playing catch up right from the start, the Bears had to pick up a 5-nil score they allowed Hurstbridge to take in the opening quarter. Not allowing this to deter them, Thomastown snapped into gear to lessen the margin to only three goals.
The score may have looked close to end the first term, but the Bears shots were missed at every angle and took longer to convert into goals which begun to set some distance between the teams as the game progressed.
Thomastown looked to be closing in on the Hurstbridge girls early in the second, where shooters Shilo Parrott and Ruby Sommerville had their best quarter. However no matter how often they succeeded in moving forward Hurstbridge, kept themselves with a decent lead.
Still close enough to turn things around, the half time scores sat at 10-16, in favour of Hurstbridge. The second half of the game however was a takeover by Hurstbridge who seemed to be almost unstoppable when it came to goal scoring.
Defenders Kylie Christian and Kendra Vann acted as a barrier in their defensive third. GD Vann was ready at the centre third line for a pass back that allowed Hurstbridge to set themselves into position closer to the goal post.
This enabled Hurstbridge to settle into the lead as the shooters found a rhythm around the circle and as the final quarter approached, Hurstbridge secured their place as grand final winners.
The Bears started the fourth looking as though they could pull out a close ending, however similar to the previous quarters shots were not sinking in for the shooters no matter how many attempts they had.
Hurstbridge secured the win and took home the trophy, with WD Sarah Gilbert awarded the best on court medal for the match.
Final score: Hurstbridge 1 (35) def Thomastown 2 (20)
Section 7 Grand Final – Macleod 2 vs South Morang 4
Macleod score a 16-goal win over South Morang to claim the Section 7 premiership.
The ending might not have been the one South Morang hoped for, but the Lions looked promising in the first quarter.
Playing a tight style of game to begin with, there was no clear leader amongst the teams.
Only a goal separated the sides, with both absolutely everything they could to get their place in the lead.
With some great passages of play by both teams, scores were kept low and as the second quarter was nearing South Morang tied the game at 6-all.
The second quarter was not as close. Macleod worked smoothly down the court as their shooters Janelle Crawford and Tegan Barry made good positions around the circle and were key players in extending Macleod’s lead.
As the second term continued play became increasingly physical as neither side took a backwards step. There were long periods of time where no team could make a score as every time one side would get close to goal they were stopped by a strong defensive line.
Macleod was able to break away from South Morang this term scoring their most amount of goals.
Their defenders Clare Hogan and Jessica Bartlett also managed first hands on the ball for almost every rebound. They then brought it down their attacking end, away from South Morang’s shooters who were only able to get two goals in.
Having given themselves the chance to get ahead in the game, the second half was where Macleod set themselves a huge buffer. They stretched their lead beyond 10 goals with concise plays towards their shooting end.
The final quarter saw teams tire, with Macleod never looking in doubt as South Morang couldn’t manufacture a fight back.
Best on court was given to Macleod defender Jessica Bartlett for her defensive work during the game.
Final score: Macleod 2 (29) def South Morang 4 (13)
Section 8 Grand Final – West Ivanhoe 3 vs Fitzroy Stars 3
West Ivanhoe 3 closed out their undefeated season with an impressive win over Fitzroy Stars 3 in the Section 8 grand final.
Despite the loss, it was a great effort by the Stars who came from fourth place at the end of the home and away season
Starting off the game it was clear the stronger team was West Ivanhoe, as they showed no mercy to the Stars, sitting 10-2 halfway through. Still being early in the game, the Stars found some form to bring in the deficit.
Ivanhoe’s WD Mary Pou was often free on centre passes while shooters Sharlin Potae and Keeley Fitzsimmons made strong leads towards the ball to get more passes into the goal circle.
The Stars managed to mount a mini comeback and soon found themselves six goals behind. The second quarter also begun in favour of Fitzroy who moved more effectively around the court, giving them better chances to work into their shooting circle.
The Stars shooters, Natasha Atkinson-Brown and Cerrin Karpany, mid-court Erin Rose and Kalayah Atkinson looked more confident this quarter as they played with conviction, able to increase their team’s score.
However this was short lived as Ivanhoe defenders Sharon Thomson and Erin Hardiman made many steals within the Stars shooting third, which they then converted to goals.
West Ivanhoe hit targets without much interference, enabling them to increase their lead over the Stars. At the end of the first half West Ivanhoe had placed themselves a fair distance ahead of the Stars, leading 27-12
With a decent margin to return from, the Stars struggled to shut down Ivanhoe who made it look almost too easy. Attackers Kelly Taurima and Demi Fitzsimmons, passed long to their shooters who kept up Ivanhoe’s good form.
Ivanhoe took a 38-21 advantage into the last break. Then in the final quarter Ivanhoe scored their most amount of goals for the game, giving the Stars little chance of a comeback,
The Stars had great moments of play in the last and could hold their heads high to the final buzzer. But Ivanhoe demonstrated why they were the competition’s leading team all season.
The best on court medal was awarded to West Ivanhoe’s GS Sharlin Potae.
Final score: West Ivanhoe 3 (52) def Fitzroy Stars 3 (27)
