James Murphy
WOMEN’S football returns to the region this weekend with the opening round of the 2023 Limestone Coast senior competition played at Vansittart Park this Sunday.
It remains a nine-team competition and all clubs will be eager to put their best foot forward to kick off the season.
Four matches will be contested on Sunday, with Penola having the bye for the round.
Reigning premier Kybybolite will hope to reinstate itself as the benchmark of the competition, after a dominant grand final performance last year.
That game will still be fresh on the minds of runner-up South Gambier.
The Demons finished the minor rounds undefeated on top of the ladder, but were simply unable to match the intensity brought by the northern Tigers in the big dance.
A rematch will be eagerly awaited, but it will not be until the final minor round of the season.
This week Kyby plays Casterton Sandford, with the Cats sure to be hungry for a top-four position after a strong win in last year’s consolation final for fifth place.
Their battle will be followed by a meeting between South and Mundulla.
Mundulla finished 2022 in fourth, falling to Kybybolite in the preliminary final.
It will be out for a strong start against the Demons, but the girls in red and white have long reigned as a frontrunner in the league.
South should take the win based on past form.
Also on the schedule will be a season-opener between Kongorong and Millicent.
Both teams finished in the bottom half of the order last year and will look to set up a more successful campaign in Round 1.
The day will conclude with a meeting between North Gambier and Kalangadoo.
North finished as runner-up in the consolation final, while the Magpies claimed the wooden spoon with a winless season.
Both sides will be out for improvement this year, with Sunday’s games sure to shed some light on what we can expect from the 2023 competition.
ROUND 1 FIXTURE (Vansittart Park) – SUNDAY, JANUARY 22
Kongorong v Millicent, 10am; Casterton Sandford v Kybybolite, 11.35am; Mundulla v South Gambier, 1.10pm; North Gambier v Kalangadoo, 2.45pm; Penola – Bye.
