In Round 14 of William Buck VAFA Premier Women’s Old Scotch continued their unbeaten march towards the finals with another commanding performance, while Old Brighton and Old Geelong secured crucial victories to tighten the race for the top four.
Fitzroy also broke through in a spirited contest against Westbourne Grammarians, capping another weekend of hard-fought Premier Women’s football.
Old Scotch 16.12 (108) def St Kevin’s 2.0 (12)
Old Scotch produced another ruthless display, defeating St Kevin’s by 106 points to remain unbeaten.
Jordan Mifsud was unstoppable with six goals, while captain Mia Cowan added five majors as the Cardinals dominated from the opening bounce. Eloise Defina joined Mifsud and Cowan among Old Scotch’s best.
Lily Griffiths and Matilda Marshall kicked St Kevin’s two goals, while Claire Lightfoot, Bella Rees and Angelique Argiros battled hard throughout the afternoon.
Old Brighton 6.5 (41) def Kew 4.10 (34)
Old Brighton strengthened their finals credentials with a hard-fought victory over Kew, overturning a nine-point half-time deficit.
Renee Saulitis starred with a brilliant five-goal performance, while Brigitte Wallace and Zara Klein were also outstanding in the seven-point win.
Kew shared their four goals between four individual goalkickers, with Millie Lang, Ellie Brown and Lily Barr once again leading the way.
Old Brighton coach Pat Malone was pleased to see weeks of work beginning to translate onto the field.
“I was really pleased with our ability to win the clearance battle. It’s an area we’ve put a lot of work into over the last few weeks, and it’s starting to pay off.”
Malone said improved forward structure had also contributed to the side’s improved scoring output.
“We’ve spent a lot of time focusing on getting our shots from deeper inside forward 50 and from more dangerous positions. The girls are beginning to trust that process, and I think the scoreboard reflected that.”
He singled out Renee Saulitis’ five-goal haul, Brigitte Wallace’s intercept work across half-back and Zara Klein’s influence around the contest.
For Kew, coach Mannie Di Parsia was disappointed with the result after his side held the lead at half-time.
“We certainly left our hearts on the field despite falling just short of the victory.”
Despite recording 238 disposals and controlling possession for long periods, the Bears lost the clearance battle 32–20 and were out-tackled 62–42. Di Parsia identified those areas as the difference, while praising Millie Lang’s 30-disposal performance and Lily Barr’s outstanding all-round game.
West Brunswick 3.8 (26) def by Old Geelong 5.2 (32)
Old Geelong kept their finals hopes alive after producing a strong final quarter to defeat West Brunswick by one goal.
Brooke McKay kicked two goals, while Genevieve Ednie, Emma Hoban and Shiralee Nicholls each added one as the OGs finished strongly after trailing at the final break. McKay, Juliet Grant and Hoban were their best on the day.
West Brunswick’s goals came through Bronte Ashworth, Claudia Piggott and Sophie Stewart, while Victoria Holt, Stewart and Amy Duguid were among their strongest contributors.
Old Geelong coach Jack Crameri was pleased his side found a different way to win.
“I was pleased with the performance this week because it was a bit different to our last two wins. We were behind at three-quarter time and kicked two goals in the last quarter to win and seal the game.”
He said the victory keeps Old Geelong’s finals hopes alive but noted tackling technique would be a focus heading into next week.
West Brunswick coach Ryan Wandel lamented another missed opportunity in front of goal.
“Similar problems to last week and our other losses with our conversion and our ability to finish opportunities letting us down.”
Wandel praised the attacking drive of Victoria Holt and another strong performance from Sophie Stewart, while saying his side would return to fundamentals and work on creating higher percentage scoring opportunities.
Fitzroy 2.9 (21) def Westbourne Grammarians 2.5 (17)
Fitzroy returned to the winners’ list with a hard-fought win over Westbourne Grammarians.
Nessa Cooney-Hunt and Willow Homersham kicked the Lions’ goals, while Megan Orr, Milla Lappin and first-gamer Riley Hall were outstanding contributors.
Lydia Waghorne kicked both of Westbourne’s goals and was among the visitors’ best alongside Sarah Dickie and Mia Graf.
Fitzroy coach Nathan Jumeau praised his side’s resilience.
“We were really happy with the fight from the team to get over in a close game.”
Jumeau highlighted the contributions of three new faces, particularly Riley Hall in her debut, while Megan Orr’s intercept marking and Milla Lappin’s leadership through the midfield proved crucial.
He also noted it was rewarding to see several players who had stepped up into the senior side celebrate their first Premier Women’s victory.
Looking ahead to Round 15, Old Geelong host St Kevin’s, West Brunswick travel to face Kew, Caulfield Grammarians come off the bye to take on Fitzroy and Westbourne Grammarians take on Old Scotch. Old Brighton have the week off.
Round 14 of William Buck Premier Men’s promised to be one of the most compelling of the entire season, and, sure enough, it turned out to be exactly that, with
Glen Eira/Old McKinnon 11.7 (73) def by PEGS 17.16 (118) PEGS showed why they are a class above the bottom four with a resounding 45-point victory over Glen Eira/Old McKinnon,
Oakleigh 13.6 (84) def Prahran 4.15 (39) While still out of the top four, Oakleigh put their best foot forward for finals with a 45-point victory over third-placed Prahran on
