By Marcus Uhe
Narre Warren’s third loss of the A-Grade netball season has left the door slightly ajar for Mt Evelyn to sneak into top spot next week and dethrone the Magpies from the minor premiership.
The Rovers got the better of Narre Warren 51-41 in a physical matchup at Kalora Park, leaving them within striking distance of snatching pole position with one week to play in the home-and-away season.
Mt Evelyn got off to the better start, leading 16-10 at the first change in what could be a grand final preview.
There were bumps and collisions throughout the contest, with the taller Magpies side playing smothering defense during the second quarter to cut the margin to just two goals at half time.
Long balls from the Rovers deep into their attacking third were intercepted time and again, the length of Abbey Barrientos and Soph Hennessey providing stumbling blocks for forward forays.
When the visitors changed to a quicker game style reliant on short passing and movement, they were able to shift the Magpies defence and penetrate the goal circle, an approach led by centre Montana Wallis.
The two-goal buffer remained at three-quarter-time before the Rovers closed the contest strong, nailing 18 goals to 10 in the final term to make the mission to Kalora Park successful.
It’s two wins from two outings against the Magpies in 2023, which should give them confidence heading in to a likely finals match-up at some point in the postseason.
Rory Barr scored 38 for the Rovers to lead their scoring, Chelsea Tonna with 14 for Narre Warren, who was missing Clare Vearing.
Hennessey, Brittany Mashado, Gabrielle Dwyer were standouts for the Magpies.
At Wandin, 70 goals from Emmalia Blake for the Bulldogs thrash Upwey Tecoma 76-32 to hold on to fifth place.
A 18-7 first quarter set the tone for a tough afternoon for those from Tigerland, the Bulldogs piling on 42 goals to 18 in the second half to run away with the contest.
It’s the fifth time Blake has raised the bat for passing 50 goals in a game in 2023, taking her tally of goals to 750 in 16 games.
Kali Dolphin led the way for the Bulldogs in the centre of the court in the absence of Kyah Kimpton.
Bethany Hosking and Bella Collodetti were recognised as Upwey Tecoma’s major contributors as Mia Lui scored 18 goals.
Joining Wandin as fellow big winners was Olinda Ferny Creek, who thrashed Gembrook Cockatoo 79-28 at home.
Hayley Howard can consider herself unlucky to not be the highest goalscorer of the week, as 65 would be enough to secure the title on most occasions, but she could not surpass Blake’s efforts at Wandin.
The Bloods appear to be back to their brutal best, keeping the Brookers to just eight goals in the first half while nailing 41 of their own.
At Pakenham, the Lions were unable to secure a victory to celebrate captain Emma Jones’ 200th game, falling to Monbulk 30-43.
The Lions fell behind 5-11 at quarter time and 11-20 at the long break, a deficit they failed to recover.
Jones played a captain’s game for the Lions with Hailey Mensen scoring 10 for the home side.
Peri Reid did much of the damage for Monbulk, scoring 33 of its 43 goals.
The battle of the two standalone clubs in Beaconsfield and Berwick went down to the wire, Beaconsfield prevailing by four goals in the 46-41 shootout at Holm Park.
The Eagles held a slender lead for much of the contest, putting their noses in front at the first break and holding Berwick at arms-length for the remainder of the afternoon.
Elizabeth Murphy responded from a quiet game the week before to score 36 goals for the home side, fed brilliantly by Millicent Utber and Zara Treweek.
Emma Clarke (23 goals) and Darcy Utber (18) shared the scoring duties for Berwick.
All positions in the top five are subject to change depending on next week’s results, with fifth (Beaconsfield) to second (Mt Evelyn) separated by just six points on the ladder.
Narre Warren’s clash with Beaconsfield headlines the action in round 18.
