Champs still sides to beat

THE 2017-18 summer season of touch football has begun at Southern Touch with defending champions in the men’s and women’s Premier Divisions picking up where they left off.

Two rounds have been played and both teams have opened their title defence in emphatic style.

In Round 1 Phantoms easily accounted for a renewed Tigers outfit in the men’s competition, downing the jungle cats 10-5 before proceeding to a Round 2 showdown against their 2016-17 grand final opponent Condors.

Phantoms hit hard and early against the birds, taking a 4-1 advantage into the break. Condors steadied but could only match their opponent in the second term with Phantoms eventually taking the victory 6-3.

There was no sign of a premiership hangover in the women’s competition as Tigers continued their domination of the competition, which saw them go undefeated in their premiership year.

Tigers coach Rebecca Oliver, the recipient of last season’s Jenny Geappen Medal as the best player in the competition, resumed the reins and looks to have her team on song early.

Tigers cruised through their first two encounters with commanding wins against Pirates (13-1) followed by Condors (12-6).

Oliver continued her own form on the back of being honoured with national duties in the Australian 27-and-over women’s team in September and shows no signs of slowing down.

This season sees the women’s competition return to its traditional Tuesday night with the men fronting up on Wednesday evenings at Wentworth Park.