Bunyip edge out Poowong

ELLINBANK and District Netball Association preliminary finals were played in fine but sometimes windy conditions at Longwarry on Saturday.
A big match was expected in the A Grade battle between Poowong and Bunyip. The big question pre-match was “where would Jess Thomas play?” In a re-match of last year’s grand final, Jess began on Poowong’s Prue Blackwood and the battle began.
There were bodies being put on the line from both sides; a dive on the asphalt is not a pleasant thing… is it Prue!!
Bunyip achieved several turnovers to lead 6-3, which could have blown out by more but for some great defence by Poowong in the Bunyip circle. The game settled and Bunyip led eight to five at quarter time.
Bunyip really dug deep in the second, and began to control the court; having Renee Cook in wing defence was a luxury for them as she backed up Jess Thomas’ athleticism. To Poowong’s credit, the final five minutes saw a mini comeback and they hit double figures by half time in a low scoring 17 to 10, to Bunyip’s advantage.
It could be argued that the lower scores we see nowadays in A grade is reflective of the amount of contesting that the defending players are not permitted to do.
The third quarter saw Bunyip consolidate with some solid play; the lead was out to 10 by the half way mark in the quarter. The final break saw the scoreboard read 23 to 13, reflecting the impact both sets of defenders had on the game.
The final quarter was an even affair as Bunyip maintained their 10-goal lead; the best Poowong could bring the margin back to was eight goals.
Congratulations to Bunyip on making their second grand final appearance in a row, and commiserations to Poowong, who were defending premiers. Final score: Bunyip 31, Poowong 21. Best-on-court: Bunyip goal attack, Claire Ablett.
In other grades, Ellinbank defeated Neerim Neerim South 38-33 in B Grade, Buln Buln won 43-26 against Bunyip in C Grade, Lang Lang edged out Nar Nar Goon 29-23 in D Grade, Bunyip crushed Poowong 24-6 in E Grade and Ellinbank won the F Grade battle with Nar Nar Goon 32-16.