VFL Women's Round 11 2016 - Eastern Devils v Knox Falcons
- Jul 3, 2016
- 2 min read
A barnstorming first quarter and a crosstown draw has seen the Eastern Devils solidify their finals chances against bottom-placed Knox.
Conditions at Mulgrave Reserve were muddy and wet but the Devils set the ground alight with a sizzling opening burst of 6.7. The match was settled from that point on and only inaccuracy prevented the final margin from being even more than its hefty 107 points.
A winless season seemed to be taking its toll on Knox in the opening quarter as the Devils – a side renowned for loving the tough ball – did as they pleased. The Devils dominated clearances and inside ball with Jess Trend and Lauren Tesoriero delivering powerhouse performances and Pepa Randall simply too quick up forward. Knox were unable to assert themselves on the contest and let themselves down with their disposal coming out of defence; the absence of the injured Sarah Farmer was clearly an impact.
Knox were able to summon some fighting spirit in the second quarter with several of their young, developing players taking the contest to the more senior Devils. Lisa Whittaker and Emily McIlvena balanced out the midfield battle and in defence, the ever-consistent Melissa Kuys starred with her intercept marks whilst Jamie Head, Cassandra Papadopoulos and Claire McKenna unflinchingly toiled to limit Devils’ forwards Randall, Josie Smith and Sarah Perkins.
The Devils were able to control much of the run of play as they got numbers around the ball with Rebecca Privitelli and the wily Tahni Nestor orchestrating much of the drive forward. However, they were blighted by poor kicking in front of goal as they sprayed eight straight shots before Alice Ryan converted from point blank range. Knox finally got on the board as Sarah Jolly kicked truly late in the second quarter.
Knox continued to fight hard against the Devils’ irresistible midfield control in the second half but too often their hurried kicks out of defence were neatly met by Privitelli, Hannah Scott and Sophie Casey. Perkins, too strong and quick off the lead to contain fully, kicked two as did her smaller confidante Jess Foster. After gifting her teammates a small pile of opportunities, Randall finally converted one of her own as the Devils went into the final quarter with an 82-point buffer. Perkins’ fourth goal halfway through the final quarter pushed that margin into triple figures as the Devils celebrated forward Sam ‘Gecko’ McGeoch’s 100th match. Meanwhile, St Kilda and Melbourne University played out a draw that bridged the gap between second and fourth to just two points.
“We focused on maintaining possession and getting a certain number of marks from our kicks,” said Devils’ coach Brendan Major, while praising the performance of his defence in the absence of injured stalwart Meg Hutchins. “They’re going really well. We saw today how Bec Privitelli’s been a massive in for our club.”
Knox coach Clint Martin says his side can now build on from the sustained effort they have been showing. “We’re still working on turnovers Inside 50 and hitting targets when we go forward.”
The Eastern Devils play St Kilda in Round 12 while Knox have perhaps their biggest chance of victory against Geelong.
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