In a nail-biting battle at Beverley Road Oval on Friday night, Banyule claimed their third straight victory in the Heidelberg Golf Club Division 1 women’s competition, defeating Eltham by just one-point.
A finals like contest took place between two sides looking to secure a spot in the top two by week’s end, with the Bears able to hold on and claim a 3.1 (19) to 2.6 (18) victory.
The victors maintain second position as a result, sharing the same points as Montmorency 1, while Eltham slip to fourth but do have a two-game gap from fifth placed Diamond Creek Women’s 1.
Led by Samantha Temple and Casey Woodward, Banyule’s defence was at its best all night, whilst Heidi Cummins and Drew Barnes continued to work tirelessly in midfield.
Despite it being a quiet night for forwards, Mairead Csar often looked threatening inside 50 and was rewarded with an early major.
For the Panthers, the in-form Sienna Gunning and Michaela Molenberg continued to go from strength to strength, with the latter hitting the scoreboard for her ninth major of the 2023 campaign.
Mia Klaic and Angelique Reibelt also had strong contributions, with Reibelt now being named in her side’s best for two consecutive matches.
Eltham looked to have the ascendency in the early stages of the game despite kicking against the breeze, but it didn’t take long for Banyule to settle into the match, ridding chances for the visitors to move the ball forward as a result.
The first goal of the game came nine minutes in when Mairead Csar slotted through her second major of the season, before just moments later, Taylah Manson pushed forward and got boot to ball to make it two goals in a quick burst for the home side.
The Bears looked to press home their advantage, but the Panthers were resolute in defence to round out the term, headlined by the incredible work of Sienna Gunning.
It meant that Eltham had a 12-point margin to chase down with the wind in their backs in the second term and from the opening play of the quarter, they looked destined to match their opponent’s first term efforts.
Some rushed behinds came before Molenberg found the big sticks to give her side some reward for effort and reduce Banyule’s lead.
The hosts did what they could defensively, but the lead change looked inevitable and was eventually achieved through a major from Reibelt.
Dan Sheean’s side pushed late in the term to try and register a score but had to settle for a three-point deficit at the main break.
Like they did in the first quarter, Eltham looked to push forward at the beginning of the third term and this time, they were able to create chances on goal.
Unfortunately for the visitors, those chances couldn’t be converted to majors, and the Bears soon countered with Chloe Sheean kicking her side’s third goal of the night, helping them regain the lead in the process.
The hosts couldn’t add any further score after Eltham’s defence again stood up, but the Bears did take an important two-point lead at the final break.
Whilst Eltham were going towards the scoring end in the final term, it was the Bears who started the fourth quarter as the more composed side, as they aimed to build on the momentum created late in the previous term.
Banyule were able to make it an incredibly contested game throughout the quarter, while any balls that did go inside the Panthers’ attacking 50 were quickly rebounded.
The game was played between the arcs for most of the last term before Eltham went all out attack in the final few moments.
But they couldn’t produce that match winning goal, allowing the Bears to hold on for an entertaining one-point triumph in front of the home crowd.
