IN a thrilling match that had everything, from injury to overtime, Swan Hill won their first Central Murray A Grade premiership in nearly a decade.
Swans co-coach Madeleine Nalder described the feeling after the match as “complete relief”.
“Not just for me personally, but for lots of us in our team,” she told The Guardian.
“We have had heartbreak, so to finally win, it’s just complete relief from everyone.
“I am super proud of not just the A Grade team, but our whole squad that we have taken in over the finals journey.
“I’m just so proud of our whole club for getting behind us and really bringing out the support.”
Regular time ended at 41 apiece, requiring 10 more to decide a winner.
The Swans mustered every last skerrick of energy they could find to prevail by six goals, 50-44.
It had almost been deja vu for the Swans, who went down to the Magpies in the semi-finals by a single goal in the last 10 seconds of the match.
“It was just like, ‘Oh no, not again, we can’t let this happen’,” Nalder said.
“It was the quickest 10 minutes of my life.
“The girls stuck at it, we were smart with the ball and our shooters were composed, and that’s all you can hope for in overtime – you’ve just got to rely on what you’ve worked on, not only this year, but over a journey.”
Lake Boga netball president Sheridan Harrop said the Magpies put up the best fight they could, but it just wasn’t to be.
“It’s disappointing that we didn’t get the outcome we wanted, but I am so proud of how far these girls have come and how hard they worked throughout the season,” she said.
“It was such an amazing achievement to get to the grand final, and for these girls especially to play together in front of a wonderful crowd.”
