Gulls cement fifth spot

A grade: Warragul 54 def Sale 22, Drouin 44 def Morwell 43, Moe 64 def Wonthaggi Power 35, Bairnsdale 43 def Leongatha 39, Traralgon 56 def Maffra 36.

B grade: Sale 37 def Warragul 33, Drouin 30 def Morwell 26, Wonthaggi Power 38 def Moe 35, Leongatha 41 def Bairnsdale 36, Traralgon 64 def Maffra 31.

C grade: Sale 34 def Warragul 17, Drouin 36 def Morwell 19, Moe 30 def Wonthaggi Power 28, Bairnsdale 55 def Leongatha 28, Maffra 42 def Traralgon 40.

Under 17: Sale 55 def Warragul 19, Morwell 31 def Drouin 25, Wonthaggi Power 43 def Moe 41, Leongatha 43 def Bairnsdale 35, Traralgon 47 def Maffra 44.

Under 15: Sale 67 def Warragul 12, Drouin 49 def Morwell 13, Moe 47 def Wonthaggi Power 17, Bairnsdale 35 drew Leongatha 35, Maffra 40 def Traralgon 27.

Under 13: Sale 52 def Warragul 2, Morwell 28 def Drouin 24, Wonthaggi Power 35 def Moe 21, Leongatha 32 def Bairnsdale 13, Maffra 40 def Traralgon 35.

Warragul cemented its finals spot in A grade with a comprehensive 32-goal win at Sale on Saturday. A grade: Warragul 54 defeated Sale 22. Warragul’s midcourt pressure was intense against a young Sale side, creating numerous turnovers.

Anna Green and Jaime Rollinson capitalised these turnovers with extreme accuracy in the windy conditions.

In what was an amazing team effort, the Gulls extended the lead at each break to win by 32 goals. It was great to hit some good form coming into finals. Award: entire team. B grade: Warragul 33 lost to Sale 37. After only beating Sale by three goals earlier in the season, Warragul’s B grade side was keen for another win.

The girls started playing behind Sale, with the wild weather impacting goaling accuracy and Sale’s strong attacking side putting the pressure on Warragul’s defensive play. The Gulls trailed by 10 goals at quarter time.

With a bit of a change up from usual positions, the Gulls started the second quarter trying to keep on top of Sale’s strong play. The Gulls trailed 10-22 at half-time.

Warragul started to turn on and play a much better defensive game in the second half, getting multiple turnovers and making use of Sale’s ball fumbles. They kept the margin to 12 goals at the last change.

The fourth quarter saw the local side do what they do best. The defensive pressure was on and the attacking end was working together to ensure turnovers and centre passes were turned into goals.

Time wasn’t on the Gulls’ side after a stunning comeback staged in the final 10 minutes. Awards: Ellen Croft and Eboni Wall. C grade: Warragul 17 lost to Sale 34. Warragul didn’t get the result they desired when they came up against Sale.

The defenders played another brilliant game. Goal keeper Matisse Olsson attacked everything and took more intercepts than could be counted. It was great to see her having the belief in herself that her coach and teammates have had all year.

Sarah Hams was her usual steadying presence in goal defence, controlling the play from the back line into attack. She was ably assisted by Emily Sandman in wing defence.

Cara McIntosh’s presence is always valuable on the court, with her voice and encouragement. Saturday was no exception.

The C grade team are looking forward to playing Bairnsdale at home in their final game of the season.

Awards: Sarah Hams, Matisse Olsson and Lizzy Bayley. Under 17s: Warragul 19 lost to Sale 55. It was an extremely tough game against Sale. The attacking end, even though it didn’t show on the scoreline, worked extremely well together. Indi Fries and Grace Radford proved to be a good combination in the goal circle. Awards: Indi Fries, Kaitlyn McKenzie and Elodie Williamson. Under 15s: Warragul 12 lost to Sale 67. It was a tough game for the Gulls against a very strong Sale team.

The Gulls all tried hard and were happy to play in different positions.

Jacinta Bagot and Zoe Phillips worked consistently in defence as always whilst Ella Weir stepped up in defence during the last quarter.

Jaz Porch continues to improve every week and Bella Hefford and Laura Miller tried hard to support the goalers.

Bridie Mulqueen and Liv Sheehan moved well and Emily Hobbs did her best in goals during the second half.

Awards: Ella Weir, Bella Hefford and Jacinta Bagot. Under 13s: Warragul 2 lost to Sale 52. It was an early start for the youngest Gulls who had a long drive to take on ladder leaders Sale.

This team is known for delivering netball lessons and Saturday was no different.

It was pleasing to see the Gulls keep their heads up, keep trying, keep smiling and never giving up.

Coaches Green and Cole managed to set good goals and keep the girls focused on what they could learn from the game.

Awards: Tess Talbot, Pippa Cook and Lucy Williamson, with a special mention to older Gulls who made the early start to support the youngsters.