REIGNING premiers Swan Hill made a statement that they are still a genuine title threat after thrashing third placed Balranald by 30 goals on the weekend.
After a tight opening quarter, the Swans completely dominated the game, outscoring the Roos 51 goals to 22 over the remaining 45 minutes to blow the visitors away 65-35.
It was a commanding performance from Swan Hill, with co-coach Madeleine Nalder full of praise for her team’s ability to control possession across the court.
“We’re really pleased with that win, Balranald are a great side but we were really happy with our consistency across the game,” Nalder said.
“Our mids combined really well with our goalers and Zoe (Morris) and Casey (Frame) positioned themselves well in the ring.
“Stevie Bibby was our best, she was able to create a lot of turnovers defensively which created opportunities for us in the attacking end and Hayley Neuschafer also had a solid game and provided plenty of drive out of defence.”
While it was a dominant display from the reigning premiers, it was equally disappointing for Balranald, with co-coach Elli-Jane Pollard left to rue a “flat second quarter” which turned the game.
“We made some silly mistakes and let Swan Hill get away from us and we were unable to gain momentum after that,” Pollard said.
“As a team we know that it was far from our best netball, but we’ll take some valuable lessons out of it and continue to work hard to be better next weekend where we hope to bounce back.”
Defender Grace Morton was the best player for Balranald.
