Friday afternoon saw the undefeated Magpies and the Carey Park Panthers battle out the first ever 15 and under netball Grand Final.
Carey Park had a few quick goals on the board before Nikira Brock and Nikki Smith started to put some shots away. Ruby Simonetti worked hard from defence and the Magpies began to settle. The Magpies lifted over the whole court but Carey park held a 14-10 lead at the first break .
The second quarter saw Carey park scored first but a quick reply from Magpies followed.
The defences worked tirelessly pulling in some awesome interceptions to put Carey Park under pressure. A held ball from Carey Park saw the Magpies score and suddenly the scores were 16-16 .
The entire Magpies team lifted and their skill and speed was on display, they flew away to a 29-21 half time lead.
The third quarter Carey park scored the first 2 goals and lifted their intensity, this only fired the Magpies up. A centre pass interception from Elle Mullumby resulted in a goal to the Magpies which extended their lead 40-31 going into the final term.
Once again Carey Park scored first but Magpies responded with a centre pass interception from Mullumby which sees Kaitlin Tucker score her first goal. The speedy Tamsin Falconer runs hard for the entire quarter as the Magpies put their foot down MVP for the Grand Final Hughes continues to shoot the lights out along with Tucker as the Magpies pile on 20 goals for the final term with the Magpies victorious 60-38.
The Magpies 18s were always going to be in for a tough match against the Minor Premiers the Blackwood Ravens but were determined to make a strong start. They came out swooping with a 15-19 first term. Half time score going Magpies 28-33. With the game up for grabs significant changes were made. Chantelle Sutherland and Smith worked hard to create the turnovers with Hannah Taylor and the Pethybridge sisters driving the ball down court to Manners and Cann who converted their shots as the Magpies slowly reduced the deficit. The crowd were cheering as the tide had turned and the Magpies were now only 2 goals down. An injury forced changes and the momentum was lost as the Ravens added another 14 goals to Magpies 10 and maintained their lead 47-38.
Going into the final term the Magpies defences tried every trick in the book even double teaming the Ravens GS Abbey Hall who put shot after shot away and was deservedly awarded the MVP. The Ravens went on to win 62-49.
The stage was set for a hot Reserves Final between Busselton and Bunbury
Both sides announced their intention early, with the first centre of the match an end to end volley for nearly 2 minutes before Bunbury found path to the ring. Magpies attack had the timing early, GS Steph Millen shooting at 100 per cent off the measured feed from Georgia ONeill and Meg Bolton for a 13-10 lead.
Both teams took to second term with full court defensive, Bunbury’s pressure on Millen and Beckett bringing some inaccuracy. Nimble GK Yas Riley came out to attack critical swinging balls, shutting down the Bulldog momentum to keep Magpies up 24-22.
The champions quarter belonged to the Magpies. Cracks began to appear in the Bulldogs, the Magpies crowd caroling for MVP Beckett, Bolton, O’Neill and Millen as they put their body on the line to take ball and connect under strong physical attention, drawing Bulldogs penalties/warnings to open the margin to 42-33.
Regrouping and wary, the Magpies were not willing to settle for possession netball. The final term delivered what the spectators came for with Bunbury outscoring the quarter. Magpie Farmer contested front ball to pressure the feeders and GK Yas Riley stood up under a peppering of attack to steal any errant feed as the Bulldogs reversed the deficit to within 4. O’Neill and Bolton pushed on with grit as the Magpies took critical intercepts in the final minutes to convert another 4 and secure the Premiership 53-44. Match MVP Beth Beckett.
Busselton Magpies league team made a slow start to their title defence against Bunbury Bulldogs who were primed for the challenge. The Bulldogs drew on their vast experience to force some early turnovers, pouncing on loose ball and converting steadily through the classy Cass Anderson at GA. But like a jogger at the park under the wrong tree, the Bulldogs neglected to keep their heads down and the Magpies swooped to take the ascendancy through some vigorous defensive efforts. The first quarter break saw Busselton ahead 11-9.
The Magpies maintained their edge in the second term, frustrating the Bulldogs. At half time the score was 28-18, with Busselton in the lead. A feisty start to the third quarter allowed Bunbury to bite back briefly, as Busselton took time to adjust to positional changes. But as the Bulldogs upped their ante, the Magpies defiantly matched their force. Busselton backline of Tammy Thornley and match MVP Riley Culnane were relentless. The third and fourth terms saw Busselton pull ahead by steady margins each quarter as they persevered to the final whistle, scoreline 53-38 to secure back to back flags.
