Arriving at the ground, we were reminded of last year’s semi final loss, and the feeling made us nervous. The failing sunshine and cold wind added to the sense of unease. And then we saw our opposition, tall timbers aplenty. This was going to be tough.
Our girls came out strong though, right from the start. With only 13 players, we looked like the underdogs, especially up against their 8-strong bench. Despite arriving right on the starter’s siren, due to a timing miscalculation, Maddie was on fire. Hard at the ball, she wasn’t deterred by those St Paul girls. Shanti too, had good hands and speed against a sizeable opposition.
Tilda was her trademark tenacious self, running and swerving her way forward. Plenty of attempts at goal, but like last week, frustratingly always for the point. And she racked up a few in the first and second quarters. Emily and Claudia also joined the fray, marking and kicking forward but alas we couldn’t convert to goals.
Mia K was great in defence stopping opposition goals and marking well. Abbey showed courage, also getting the mark and smothering the ball. Our second quarter was strong, and at half time our spirits were high; we had a close match on our hands with 5 points to their 8.
From the sidelines, the third term was a hair-tearing, nail-biting, yelling kind-of-quarter. Every attempt at goal was thwarted by those St Paul strongholds. Mika had a lightning passage of play and Elicia an exciting run at goal, but alas it was like we were only able to clock on the point-o-metre this game.
But bring forward the dazzling Daisy! Working her magic, and after taking a ball to the stomach, she took control and kicked a goal. YAYYYY!!! For the first time we had a narrow lead at 12-11.
But those St Paul’s players fired back; keeping the ball up their end for much of the last two quarters, they secured a handful of goals and points. Tilda, however, was steadfast in her effort, persevering to the end despite copping some tough play. (Eloise) Squiz dished out her tackling best. Batman and Aliyah flew high and consistently pushed the ball forward.
Best on Ground deservedly went to Tilda for being a jet, and never giving up. Awards to Eloise for tackling hard and Daisy for being an excellent captain, leading by example as well as getting plenty of touches all game.
Great game girls, but let’s turn those points into goals next week! Final score: 15 (1,9): 35 (5,5)
