North Heidelberg 6 ended a three-game losing streak in the NFNL winter netball Section 3 competition with an impressive 14-goal victory over Thomastown 1 at Nets Banyule Stadium.
A huge 12 goal to four third term broke open a game that was fairly competitive in the first half, paving the way for the Bulldogs to triumph 40-26.
North Heidelberg remain in fifth position but are now only outside the top four on percentage, while Thomastown still sit with two wins in seventh spot.
The 40 goals from the Bulldogs were split between Stephanie Jones (22 goals) and Avril Florance (18), who created a powerful duo in the attacking third.
Meanwhile Samantha Lambert was a crucial factor to her side’s win in the defensive end, playing a role in the Bulldogs conceding the least number of goals to an opposition since May.
Ruby Sommerville led the way in the attacking half for the Bears, scoring her highest game total in four games, with trio Brooke Chadwick, Alexandra Forrest and Olivia Grant constantly working hard in the midcourt throughout the match.
Both teams went goal for goal in the early stages of the game, with the Bears working hard in attack, pulling down strong rebounds to create multiple chances under the net.
The Bulldogs matched their intensity in the defensive end, winning many one-on-one contests and eventually did enough in the attacking end to hold a slight one-goal advantage at quarter time.
North Heidelberg started to gain some ascendency throughout patches of the second quarter, with centre Louisa Harper a standout in the term.
Her efforts to keep the ball moving forward allowed her side to maintain possession and wrestle control of the contest. Teammate Samantha Lambert also ensured no Thomastown shooters had easy avenues to goal.
That however didn’t stop Sommerville converting eight chances into goals for the term, almost single handedly keeping her side in the game on the scoreboard.
From the outset of the third term, North Heidelberg looked determined to extend their four-goal half time lead.
The defensive pair of Lambert and Christine Padfield would create plenty of transitional plays from a disciplined Bulldogs outfit, as they placed huge amounts of pressure on the Bears backcourt and as a result, produced a 12-goal term.
Thomastown did what they could but couldn’t match the high pressure produced by their opposition and headed into the final change down by 12 goals.
North Heidelberg continued to click in attack throughout the final quarter, limiting the Bears movement around the court in the process.
And while Thomastown evened out the term, they couldn’t reduce the deficit, with the Bulldogs winning their fifth match of the season.
