Competition shakes up after favourites pull off huge victories

Fresh off the bye and ready to attack the second half of the season, it was clear the premiership favourites in Old Brighton and Marcellin benefitted from the week off and were ready to issue a warning to the competition as finals looms.

Both wins were impressive, but it was Marcellin who found form reminiscent of their 2023 season as they posted a 118-point win over fellow flag hopeful Collegians.

There was really not much to celebrate for Collegians, held goalless for the entire game as Marcellin piled on 118 points from 38 scoring shots. Had Marcellin kicked more accurately, the scoreline threatened to be a lot larger as they registered 16.22.

Alana Pane produced a best on ground performance with three goals and her seventh best player mention of the season. Zoe Glascott took her goal tally to 29, with a huge six-goal haul. With seven different goal scorers, it was hard to allocate just six of the best performances, but the accolades went to Billie Harvey, Charlotte McGilp, Olivia Frost, Tania Carpinteri and Annaleise Xanthos who led their team to victory.

Collegians did not select any players at the time of writing.

Next week, Marcellin will host Old Melburnians on Saturday afternoon, whilst Collegians face another tough opponent in top of the ladder Old Brighton at Brighton Beach Oval on Saturday morning.

Old Haileybury also had a tough day out on Saturday against cup favourites Old Brighton, held to three points for the entire game whilst Old Brighton registered 57-points to soar to a 54-point victory.

Impressively, Old Brighton strung together a 29-point first half, followed by a 28-point second half to consolidate the lead all whilst holding Haileybury goalless. Captain India Tait was the best on ground once again as she makes a strong case for the Team of the Year, whilst Sienna Courtney was impressive with four goals. Caterina O’Brien, Jasmine Tait, Katie Grant, Charley Hodgson, and Sophie Grant all played strong games.

Although it was a tough day for Haileybury, co-captain Isabella Scaunich led from the front showing off strong leadership skills and registering her eighth best on ground for the season across just nine games. Scaunich is another who is making a strong case for inclusion in the Team of the Year.

Next up, Old Haileybury face an evenly matched side in Parkdale. Despite a large gap in their percentage, if Old Haileybury win they will draw equal with Parkdale and two games off Collegians pending the results of other games. Marcellin will take on the bottom of the ladder Old Melburnians.

The most evenly contested game of the round was between the Parkdale Vultures and Old Melburnians, with OMs storming to their second win of the season and an impressive one at that.

A massive second quarter set up victory for the team, scoring three goals and holding Parkdale to just the two behinds. A low scoring third quarter evened up the contest, before Old Melburnians came storming home in the last quarter with 2.3 to solidify victory.

Despite still sitting on the bottom of the ladder, their form looks much improved coming off the back of the bye.

On a tough day for Parkdale, Sienna Symons and Hannah Radford both had a goal apiece whilst Lucy Burgess, Hannah McCorquodale and Rachel Watson were all impressive. For Old Melburnians, Prue Harvey was a clear standout with four goals to her name. Ella Bennetts, Emily Fraser and Abigail Proper also had notable games.

Next up, Old Melburnians will be hoping to showcase their new form streak against the current form team of the competition in Marcellin, made even tougher by the fact they will travel to play on Marcellin’s home turf. Parkdale Vultures will be hoping to bounce back against Old Haileybury.

Next week looms as a challenging week for a lot of teams as they travel to take on premiership favourites and prove their own credentials, whilst others will be looking to shake off the post bye blues.