Open suffer first defeat
No joy at Gather Round
IT was Gather Round for the Gippsland Female Football Associaton on the weekend.
This year saw all games played at the Traralgon Recreation Reserve
Youth Girls were the first to take to the field.
Up against Traralgon the Woodside were on the back foot early as the Maroons opened up a handy 21 point lead in the first term. Traralgon built on that lead in the second to lead by 35 at the half time break. The Wildcats played a better brand of football in the third outscoring the Maroons but not by enough to worry the Maroons who went on to record a 37 point win.
Final score Traralgon 8.8 57 defeated Woodside 3.2 20
Woodside Best: Manawa Apiata, Emily Hustwayte, Lexie Francis, Grace Scott, Esther Hinkley, Zoe Hustwayte
Open
Woodside’s Open side has fallen just short in its quest for four consecutive victories, going down to Moe by 10 points after an encouraging late fightback in a hard-fought Gather Round clash.
Moe arrived determined to halt Woodside’s winning run and set the tone early, edging ahead by five points at quarter-time before extending the lead to 10 points by the main break.
Despite Moe’s dominance around the contest in the third quarter, Woodside’s defence stood tall under immense pressure. Chan Tie was outstanding across half-back, intercepting repeatedly and taking strong marks to keep her side within striking distance.
Coach Hancock praised the efforts of the defensive unit, particularly given the inexperience within the group.
“Our defensive unit is mostly new to footy so we certainly commend them on their efforts despite the ball often being in Moe’s forward line,” Hancock said.
“At quarter-time we spoke about ensuring we play in front so once we do exit from defence we put ourselves into a good position to move the ball to our forward line and give our defenders a break.”
Moe eventually pushed its advantage out to 17 points heading into the final term, but Woodside refused to surrender.
After a passionate address from Hancock at the final break, the home side attacked the contest with renewed intensity. Woodside lifted its pressure around the ground, restricted Moe’s scoring opportunities and steadily chipped away at the margin.
“We gave ourselves a challenge in the final quarter to attack at all costs, to go after the win and to be brave in our efforts,” Hancock said.
“We unfortunately missed out on the win but the effort was promising.”
Several players earned praise for their contributions, with Jorja Millington continuing her impressive form.
“Jorja is becoming very important as she has clean hands and is confident to put her body on the line,” Hancock said.
“Marley Johnston and Lexie Frances worked really hard and made some important contests, while Jackie Chan often worked back and became crucial to our rebound off half-back.”
Woodside’s tackling pressure remained a feature throughout the contest, led by Jackie Chan with 10 tackles and Mea Perkins with eight.
Despite the defeat, Hancock said the side would take confidence from matching it with one of the competition’s leading teams.
“We take a lot of positives from the game. We are only two goals off one of the top teams, who fielded a very strong side. This proves we aren’t far off the mark,” Hancock said.
“A lot of the players played a better second half, showing great resilience and the ability to work into the game.”
Woodside will now turn its attention to another major challenge this Sunday when it takes on ladder leaders Boisdale-Briagolong.
“We will work this week on our contested game both on the ground and in the air, as this can improve across the field,” Hancock said.
“We are really well connected off field and the team are already thinking about how they can improve for this Sunday against the top-of-the-ladder Boisdale-Briagolong Bombers.”
Open
Moe 4.7 31 def Woodside 3.3 21
Woodside Best: Jackie Chan Tie, Laura Jonston, Emily Hustwayte, Lexie Francis, Laura Foat, Lydia Trotta
