LIMESTONE Coast women’s footballers wrapped up the minor season on the weekend, with round eight hosted by Mundulla on Sunday.
The matches were catch ups from the rescheduled round one fixture, which saw the start of the season pushed back due to extreme heat.
As has often been the case this year, the round was filled with big wins and the closest margin was a 28-point victory to Mundulla over Millicent in the final game of the day.
To start the round South Gambier held North Gambier scoreless on its way to a 72-point victory, while Casterton Sandford was also unable to hit the board in a monstrous 99-point loss to an undefeated Kybybolite.
The third game saw Glencoe with a solid victory over East Gambier, while Kalangadoo triumphed over West Gambier/Port MacDonnell by 73 points.
Teams now turn their attention to this Sunday’s grand final at Blue Lake Sports Park, where clubs will battle it out for the best possible finish to the season.
SOUTH GAMBIER 11.6 (72) d NORTH GAMBIER 0.0 (0)
DESPITE a slow start, a massive second half saw South Gambier defeat North Gambier by a convincing 72 points to open the day.
With just a 14-0 lead at the long break, the Demons piled on the goals in the third term to lead by an unassailable 53 points by the final change.
Another solid quarter turned that into a 72-point margin and handed the Demons their sixth win of the season.
From there all eyes were on the final match of the day, as a loss to Mundulla had the potential to lift South into the top two on percentage.
However, Mundulla overcame Millicent to remain in second and set up a grand final berth with Kybybolite this weekend.
Kendell Saffin was again at her best in front of goals for South, with five majors for the match.
That puts her on top of the league goal kicking table at the conclusion of the minor rounds, with a total of 28, ahead of Kybybolite’s Hayley Sellars on 26.
Saffin was joined by Jessica Kennedy and Victoria Lucas as the leading scorers, with the pair finding the big sticks on two occasions each.
However, it was Imogen Walker who was named as best-on-ground for her solid performance, with a goal to show for her efforts.
Darcie Kuhl rounded out the goal kickers also with one.
Lucas and Kennedy were also among the Demons’ best, as were Clare Chaplin and Samara Telford.
For North it was Piper Killick who best served her side.
KYBYBOLITE 14.15 (99) d CASTERTON SANDFORD 0.0 (0)
THE biggest win of the day saw minor premier Kybybolite claim a merciless 99-point victory over Casterton Sandford.
The Northern Tigers wasted no time establishing the lead, with the margin at 27 points by the first change.
From there the Cats had no answers and with a 44-point difference at half time, the game was all but won.
The Victorians failed to hit the scoreboard for the full four quarters and as a result suffered the sixth loss of their debut season.
But the damage could have been far greater, as Kybybolite scored 15 behinds on the day.
The reigning premiers will want to improve on their accuracy when they take to Blue Lake Sports Park this weekend for their title defence against Mundulla.
Hayley Sellars led the way on the scoreboard again with six goals, which saw her finish the minor rounds second in the league goal kicking standings.
She was also named second best for the match, while Tyler Atkinson claimed the best-on-ground honours with a goal to boot.
Susannah Maber and Sophie Hentschke were also strong in front of goals, with two majors each.
For Casterton Sandford Scarlett Jarrad and Erin Munro were named first and second best respectively, but their efforts were not enough to prevent the Cats’ slaughter.
GLENCOE 10.7 (67) d EAST GAMBIER 3.2 (20)
A CLOSE game was expected when East Gambier and Glencoe faced in the third match of the round, but the result was a 47-point win to the latter.
The game was opened up in the second quarter when the Murphies piled on 26 unanswered points to lead by 32 heading into the long break.
Another scoreless term for the Bulldogs followed and a margin of 53 was too much to overcome.
East held Glencoe to just one goal in the final stanza, but was only able to score two of its own.
Madi Zuijdveld topped the scorer’s sheets for the victors, with three goals and the second place among Glencoe’s best.
It was Sarah Edwards who received the best-on-ground honours, while two goals to Alice Tentye and Carly Schultz bolstered the score.
For the Bulldogs Sara Smith, Neave Delaney and Isabel Redemski scored a goal each.
KALANGADOO 10.19 (79) d WEST GAMBIER/PORT MACDONNELL 1.0 (6)
THERE is little to say of the clash between Kalangadoo and West Gambier/Port MacDonnell, with the latter unable to hit the scoreboard until the final term.
That saw Megan Hein convert a goal to lessen the damage to 73 points at the final siren.
The outcome of the match was clear from the start, as the Magpies soared to a 24-point lead by the first change.
By half time the margin had been extended to 38, while a big third quarter saw Kalangadoo head into the final term with a 68-point lead.
A goal and five behinds saw the total of 79 reached, while the Roos narrowly avoided another scoreless match.
Paris Ackland scored two goals for the Magpies, while the rest were shared around, with five players converting a major each.
One of those was Narelle Ryan, whose efforts awarded her with the best-on-ground title, while Emmason Ilsley and Bianca Thorn were also among the top performers.
MUNDULLA 5.4 (34) d MILLICENT 1.0 (6)
PROBABLY the most anticipated match of the round was that between Mundulla and Millicent.
Both teams had shown solid form throughout the season and a good battle was expected.
But that was not the case, with the home team holding the Saints scoreless until the final quarter.
A three-goal opening term saw Mundulla with a solid lead to start the match, which was increased to a 31-point advantage by half time.
Millicent fought back to hold its opponent to just three points in the third term, but remained unable to score itself.
It was not until Kristie Rowe found the big sticks in the fourth quarter the Saints had a reason to celebrate, but it was far from enough to turn the game around, despite a scoreless quarter for Mundulla.
Carlee Feder best served the victors on the day and Brooke Ballinger was named second best, while Tracey Poulton and Jenna Kennett led the goal kicking with two each.
Poulton was also among the best, as was Amy Bruce, who rounded out the goal scorers with one.
