BALRANALD have completed a remarkable comeback in coming from 11 goals down midway through the second quarter to defeat Nyah-Nyah West United by three goals at Greenham Park on Saturday.
The 48-45 result was the Demons’ third loss by four goals or less and fifth loss by a single-figure margin, with NNW United falling to eighth on the Central Murray A grade ladder with just three wins in what is quickly shaping as a season of missed opportunities.
It was, however, a much-needed win for Balranald after consecutive losses to Swan Hill and the Mallee Eagles, with the Roos’ sixth win of the season keeping them in the hunt for a top-three berth.
After racing away to a six-goal quarter-time lead, NNW United continued to pile on the pressure early in the second term, with Sarah Gaskin and Steph Henson scoring six of the first seven goals to open hold a 23-12 lead over the home side.
From that moment on, however, it was Balranald’s game, with a couple of key positional changes altering the direction of the contest, according to Balranald co-coach Elli-Jane Pollard post-match.
“It was a great result. We let it slip away early and really weren’t playing anywhere near our best netball, but credit to our girls, they dug deep, never gave up and fought all the way and we were very happy to get the four points,” Pollard said.
“We made a few positional changes which probably proved to be the catalyst to our turnaround.
“We brought Bec Harvey on as goal shooter for me and I went back to goal keeper as we were lacking a bit of height in our defensive ring and I felt that just helped to give us more structure at both ends of the court.
“Our defensive pressure was fantastic across the court and Bonnie Jolliffe with her drive through the midcourt was great; she was our best player for the day.”
Jolliffe had a match-defining battle against NNW United centre Matika Mitchell, with both players among their respective teams’ key contributors for the afternoon.
For NNW United coach Madi Jones, Saturday’s loss was another bitter pill to swallow, with the Demons continuing to show rapid improvement and yet again getting close to upsetting a leading contender but ultimately falling short.
“It was definitely a tough loss for us but we played some of our best netball for the season, which is a massive positive – and that’s how we need to look at it,” Jones said.
“Hopefully we can keep some momentum going forward and get some wins on the board as we progress through the season.
“Across the court the girls were patient and really looked after the ball when we had possession, which was a positive.”
The news wasn’t all good for Balranald, however, with wing attack Brie Galvin set for an extended period on the sidelines after injuring her knee in the third quarter of Saturday’s match.
Galvin, who was one of the Roos’ better players to that point, will join injured goaler Jess Parry in watching on when the Roos play the Cohuna Kangas in a season-defining contest this Saturday, while NNW United will need to beat Tyntynder to keep their finals hopes alive when they host the Bulldogs this weekend.
FINAL WHISTLE
BALRANALD 48
NNW UNITED 45
