Robe 57 d Kongorong 31
ROBE proved too strong for its young Kongorong hosts on Saturday.
The Roosters were off to a strong start and turned over the Hawk’s first centre to convert the first couple of goals unanswered.
Robe’s Ellen Ramke was on from the first whistle and worked hard in the circle to apply pressure down the Hawk’s attacking end.
Down the other end of the court, Kongorong’s defensive line of Riley Buckingham, Emily Lightbody and Sarah Lucas took a while to adjust to the Roosters’ quick ball movement.
Eventually they settled into the quarter and were able to curb some of Robe’s momentum late in the quarter.
However, the Roosters held an eight-goal lead at the change, thanks to the early momentum.
Perkins and Buckingham battled hard in the Robe attacking circle and both were influential for their teams throughout the second term.
The Hawks settled in the second quarter, with Evie Sealey and Tilah Buckingham able to look after the ball with some accurate feeding from Kate Wright and Rach Perry.
Robe’s Lucy Perkins and Annie Hunter turned it up another gear and their experience started to show as the Roosters remained composed and were able to push their lead out a further four by half time.
The Hawks entered the third quarter with work to do and made some changes in hopes of achieving their goal.
Lightbody moved to goal keeper to add some height to the circle, while Lyl Page gave fresh legs to the wing defence position.
Lightbody’s height proved crucial and she was able to get her hands to some rebounds, Buckingham lifted her work rate and started to see some reward from her pressure.
Down the other end of the court Roosters’ defenders also found their groove with Ramke and Emma Grant capitalising on any missed shots from the Hawks.
Sarah Laurie was the focal point for Robe during the term and she shot 11 of 13 goals for the quarter.
That saw the Roosters outscore the Hawks 14 to five and left a Robe victory without doubt.
Despite the young Hawks improvement and attempts to limit the damage on the scoreboard, Robe was the more polished side.
It maintained possession and the speed and accuracy shown allowed the Roosters to run away with the game.
