Hot Pies bring up win 13
NORTH Geelong coach Shannon Knox was relieved her side overcame a “sloppy” first half to register its 13th win in a row and retain its perfect record for the season.
In a showdown between Division 1’s top two sides, the Magpies edged clear after quarter-time to eventually defeat St Mary’s by 41 points yesterday.
A spirited contest with both sides applying plenty of pressure in the opening half ended with the ladder leaders holding a 15-point lead at the main break.
The Magpies came out and showed their class in the second half before holding the Saints goalless in the final term to run away with an 8.7 (55) to 2.2 (14) win.
Cheryl Degroot and Jane Burch kicked three goals each for the Magpies, while St Mary’s forward Jady Brkic booted their only two goals.
“We always know St Mary’s bring their A-game against us, they’re a quality side, so it was about sticking to those little things (sticking to structure and spread from the contest) that we always set out to achieve,” Knox said.
“We played on our terms, it was pretty ugly footy in the first half so we wanted to stay away from that.”
She said she trialled new combinations for the Magpies, including giving youngster Tiahna AndreeJansz a stint in the ruck.
Knox praised Ashlee Wilkes and Courtney Stevens, with the latter playing a starring role in her first game for the year after missing with a broken finger.
Saints leader Jady Brkic felt her side matched it for three quarters with the best side in the competition, but that the Magpies’ experience took over in the final term.
Brkic said the young Saints would learn from the loss.
“They’re a very strong team, we feel like the first three quarters were fantastic compared to our previous games, but we just let it slip a bit in that last quarter,” she said.
“We just have to keep our head high, though the score might not reflect it but it was actually one of our better games so we just need to remember that they aren’t invincible and we can do it as a team.”
Consistent ball winner Breanna Beckley, Brydie Dwyer, Laura Negri and Darci Rodgers were among the best for the Saints.