Locked in: Mooroopna's Jazmin Clark.
Photo by
Aydin Payne
Mooroopna exacted revenge on its preliminary final opponent on Saturday, but a serious injury to a star player has put a dampener on the 12-goal victory.
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Gun goaler Dayna Williams suffered a nasty knee injury in the opening minutes of the round four win over Seymour and was unable to complete the game.
Williams, one of the Goulburn Valley League’s premier A-grade talents, hyperextended her knee in the first quarter of the 35-23 win at Mooroopna.
Mooroopna coach Di Hanslow said Williams, who plays for Melbourne University Lightning in the Victorian Netball League, would undergo scans this week to learn the extent of the injury.
Hanslow was devastated for her side’s classy young performer.
“It’s a bit of a shattering day,” Hanslow said.
“We won’t know (the prognosis) until later this week. It looks suspect (of an ACL injury) I saw the knee wobble and it didn’t look flash.
“We all have our fingers crossed for good news.”
Faced with the difficult circumstances of completing a match against the two-time reigning premier with its star player on the sidelines, Mooroopna dug deep and found a way.
Give and go: Mooroopna's Bree Hanslow.
Photo by
Aydin Payne
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Waiting for the right pass: Seymour's Courtney Aldous.
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Aydin Payne
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Ready and waiting: Seymour's Rosie O'Sullivan.
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Aydin Payne
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Quick pass: Mooroopna's Paigan Impey.
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Aydin Payne
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Eyes up: Mooroopna's Sienna Burke.
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Aydin Payne
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Cool and collected: Mooroopna's Asha Gray.
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Aydin Payne
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On the move: Mooroopna's Caitlin McLachlan.
Photo by
Aydin Payne
Defensive duo Maddi Wong and Caitlin McLachlan led the way with their pressure in the defensive ring, while Asha Gray provided stingy defence in centre all game.
“It was just mixed emotions for all of us, from the players and the coaches, to get your head back in the game when you see something like that happen,” Hanslow said.
“But I was very pleased with our defensive end and they kept us in the game while we sorted out our goaling end. It was a brilliant effort; their pressure over the ball and pressure through the court was sensational.”
Despite the bleakness of seeing Williams suffer an injury, there was a shining light for the Cats.
Teenager Sienna Burke was thrown into the goaling end along with midcourter Jazmin Clark, with the two emerging prospects shining with 23 goals between them in the second half.
“We know Sienna is an awesome young talent, hence why we put her into B-grade this year,” Hanslow said.
“It was great to see her come on and play a more solid game than she probably did in B-grade.
“Jaz does a fantastic job as a tall wing defence ... I’m sure plenty who didn’t know Jaz would have wondered ‘who swings their wing defence to goal shooter?’, but she is so versatile.”
Around the courts, Tatura maintained its perfect record to start the season with a classy second-half performance against Kyabram to claim a 48-33 win.
The Bulldogs improved on their two-goal lead at the main break with 26 goals to 13 in the second half.
Steph Smih-Gorrie continued her classy start to the year and Molly Boyle was a standout in defence for the Bulldogs, while Hollie Reid was Ky’s top performer.
Elsewhere, Shepparton Swans have won two games on the bounce to improve their season record to 2-2.
Sophie Garner and goaler Chelsea McDonald were the two standouts in the 48-42 win over Echuca on the road.
Olivia Morris was judged best-on for Euroa in its impressive win over Shepparton United.
The gun goaler shot 49 goals in the Magpies’ memorable 69-31 triumph.
Rochester pulled off an upset win over Shepparton and prevailed by the narrowest of margins.
The Tigers clinched a 54-53 win at Deakin Reserve.
Lastly, Benalla is on the board in 2023 following its thrilling 38-37 win over Mansfield.
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