In a thrilling, hard fought match, the Rovers Women went down to Mazenod by three points at Elsternwick Park on Sunday.
The overarching theme of the game was pace, with all players across the ground winning the ball and taking off with confidence in their team mate’s ability to back them up. This style of play was none more evident in our star of track and (Footy)field, Lizzie Dingledei and resident BFF, Taylan Merrick who took out equal best on for their fabulous running efforts.
Perhaps they were inspired by the athletic prowess of true blue Rovers legend Jack Zaina, who doubled as our Coach and Runner.
Throughout the game, the lead jumped around like Chloe McClaren on the mark. It was a very even first half, with Hampton trailing 7 to 17 at the major break. However, with a 2. 5 third quarter to 0.1 with the wind, Hampton hit the lead 24 to 17 heading into the last. Unfortunately, the wind was too much to overcome, with Mazenod just getting over the line 36 to 39.
Amy Cullen backed up her co-best on ground performance last week with another in and under game, barrelling through contest after contest. Tash Harrison’s ruckwork was fierce, and she used her height to advantage with some strong marks around the ground. Tarryn Hurst was a lively forward and was launched into the midfield to use her skills and speed to advantage. Though she’s never far from a goal as she still managed to sneak down forward for a strong mark and cheeky six points! Nikki Clarke used the ball well all day, continuing to lead us with composure and make the game look easy.
Further goal kicking highlights were Rovers debutante Anna Moore’s effortless kick over the dumbstruck opposition and Milly Lindsay’s fantastic accuracy under some high volume set shot pressure (even the opposition’s water girl was getting into her).
In VAFA terms, a game like this would easily be Prime Time footy. Isn’t it amazing that most of these ladies have only been playing the game for less than six months Or better yet, have only known each other for that long? A key strength of our team is our instant friendship with each other and side by side we’ll embrace Melbourne Uni next Sunday with open arms….then tackle them to the ground.
This week’s game against Melbourne University has been confirmed for Sunday 2:50pm at Boss James Reserve. It’ll be the first game back at the Boss since the first ever VAFA Women’s match held back at the start of April and we encourage everyone to get along and show their support as the Rovers look to claim their third win.
