KERANG have proved they are among the top contenders in this year’s Central Murray competition, beating the Mallee Eagles by 11 goals at the weekend.
After the previous round’s rain, warmth returned to courts across the region, making it a hard slog for both sides at Riverside Park. Missing eight players from their A Grade squad, including co-coach Meg Allen, the Eagles were at a disadvantage before they even took to the court, a fact Blues coach Chloe Adams was highly aware of.
“While we do take confidence from the win, we definitely know that wasn’t them at full strength,” she said.
“That’s why we were happy to come away with a good 11-point win as opposed to just a couple of points – that does give us confidence moving forward.”
Katelyn Wright was among one of the Blues’ best, playing a sensational game in the defence end against goaler Julia Amezdroz.
“Her work rate is just second-to-none,” Adams said. “Her defence but also her attacking work down the court was fantastic.”
While she was happy with the solid win, Adams said she is still looking for more consistency from her players throughout the four quarters.
“We had some really great passages of play, and when it was on it was sensational, but we’ve just got to be able to pull ourselves back from lulls a little bit quicker than what we have been,” Adams said.
Eagles co-coach Jess Jobling said her team fought right until the end despite having to play catch-up for most of the match, and are already looking ahead to their next game.
“We’re looking forward to challenging Kerang again later in the year, but for now we focus on another quality opponent in Swan Hill this weekend coming,” Jobling said.
While the Eagles will have another tough contest against the Swans, Kerang will be looking for another win against Nyah-Nyah West United in round 3.
FINAL WHISTLE:
Kerang 42
Mallee Eagles 31
