Nomads Women battle hard in high scoring affair
Round 3 vs Tamworth Swans
The weekend had the Nomads travel down the hill again to meet the Tamworth Swans. It had turned into quite a tropical day down at Riverside, weather we weren’t used to from our highlands paradise. This game had a big relevance in the context of our season. We were sitting fourth on the ladder on percentage alone and a win would go a long way to setting us up for a finals berth. A scalp on the road would be a huge confidence boost for our girls and sweet reward for their efforts over the past few weeks. We were travelling light with only a dozen girls however it was a very solid 12. We could smell a potential upset. Alas, despite playing a brilliant game of football and kicking our highest score in a long time, our girls went down by three goals. The final score being 9.5.59 to 11.11.77.
The girls started the first quarter well and had a dominant quarter. We were playing 12 a side which meant there was plenty of space even on a smaller ground like riverside. We relished the room to move as we implemented our fast-attacking game style. Molly Davidson was up and about early, getting plenty of footy at the coal face and giving us plenty of drive. Nay Patmore was playing with immense confidence and with great skill execution in her best game since joining us this year. Backing herself in, she took the game on and the Swans were hardly able to lay a finger on her. The first quarter was a really good arm wrestle as both teams tested each other’s defences. Following our good goal kicking form from last week we had three goals on the board early and set up a good 5 point lead heading into the first change.
A gentlemen’s agreement to reduce the quarter length from 20 minutes to 15 was widely regarded as a good move by our girls. As is the nature of football, the Swans kicked away in a momentum swing putting five on the board to our two. The heat was bearing down on us, but we kept battling to stop the Swans running away with it. Annabelle Fox was involved in a lot of the action winning hardballs, giving us first use at stoppages and contributing to the scoreline with a major. Chloe Faggotter in her debut for the club was busy putting her head over the footy as she found her feet in the game. Vice-Captain Loz ‘Sticks’ Nest was leading from the front and inspiring her team by attacking the footy and tackling like a demon. Kaitlyn Read was playing her role in the backline, intercepting the Swans advances, and providing run out of our defence. We really didn’t do a lot wrong during the quarter. We were just slightly outplayed as the Swans used their extra numbers to hurt us on the scoreboard. Our small lead had vanished and were now 14 points down heading into half time.
Following a well-deserved rest, we knew were still right in the contest and were determined to keep taking the fight up to the Swans. A strong defensive effort from both teams meant scores had become scarce. Our backline supported by our midfield was holding up beautifully. Connie Blake along with Ash ‘The Grasshopper’ Wright and Kayley Ohara were solid as a rock. These backline sisters were demonstrating some great defensive instincts and were instrumental in denying the Swans few scoring opportunities. Kayley in particular is improving every week as she has solidified herself as a formidable defender. Meanwhile down the other end, Annie Marquison and our little pocket rocket Sofia Dwyer were looking dangerous whenever the footy entered our forward line. Sof has been a revelation in the forward line, her hunger to win the ball paired with her natural instincts for the game are impressive for a first seasoner. All her hard work this year paid off as she bagged herself her first goal of the year. Our fearless Vice Skipper sustained a knee injury late in the quarter which put a dampener on a what was a relative strong quarter from us.
We’d played three really solid quarters of footy thus far. Its becoming second nature to our girls that they dig deep and always find a little extra gas when they’re spent. We didn’t look like a team that was playing with 12 girls and no bench. We continued to take the game on all quarter, and it paid dividends. This truly speaks volumes about the resilience, desire and drive of our girls to always go one better and never stop until the buzzer blows. Rampaging Molly Martin was a star this quarter. A swap into the ruck for Loz meant she could run a muck around the ground. She was unstoppable kicking four goals for the game in a best on ground performance. Loz very admirably continued to push on despite her hurt knee, even managing to add a few goals to her tally, making it three for the day. We managed three straight majors for the quarter to keep in touch with the Swans. The second quarter really costs us as the Swans ran out eventual 18-point winners.
It is a sight to behold when our girls can travel short and put on a performance like they did on the weekend. To play with such tenacity and flair even right into the last quarter when they were no doubt absolutely spent is sublime. Each of our girls should hold their heads high and be proud of their efforts. Adversity creates bonds and character. Games like this will set us up for success. We are playing as a really unified team. From our backline through to our forwards, everyone plays their role to a fault. These last few weeks have shown our brand of footy and game style stack up against the better teams in the league. We simply just need more cattle on the paddock. Opposition teams threat the day we put a full team on the field. With the way we’re playing, a win isn’t too far away.
Awards
Players Player: Annabelle Fox
Captain’s Award: Molly Martin
Coaches’ Award: Chloe Faggotter
