Sport
11 July, 2026
Trendsetters are pushed
UNBEATEN Mitiamo, missing superstar goaler Laura Hicks, has survived its toughest match of the season, beating Newbridge by nine goals at Riverside Park.
UNBEATEN Mitiamo, missing superstar goaler Laura Hicks, has survived its toughest match of the season, beating Newbridge by nine goals at Riverside Park.
The all-conquering Superoos did not look like losing the contest, but nor could they pull away from the dogged Maroons, who are third on the ladder after the defeat.
Mitiamo coach Jen Wilson said a tough match was better for her side than the crushing wins the Superoos had been routinely recording this year.
“It was good for the girls that it was a narrow margin and that they had to fight for the full four quar-ters,” she said.
“It’s good to learn things from a game; you have to concentrate a little bit more.
“Sometimes as coach you can sit back and spectate a little – this time I did have to coach.”
Tahlah Diss came in for Hicks, who will also miss this week’s match with Maiden Gully on holi-days, and stepped up despite usually playing as a wing defence in A Reserve. “They’re big boots to fill, but she showed her versatility,” Wilson said.
Wing defence Lauren Knight and goal attack Abbi Wells were best for Newbridge, which will take a lot of confidence out of the game.
MACORNA came desperately close to winning its first A Grade netball match in the Loddon Valley competition, falling to a one-goal defeat at Bears Lagoon Serpentine last Saturday.
The Tigers trailed early in the match but clawed their way back to level with the Bears at the final change.
In a thrilling last quarter, Serp scored eight goals to seven to sneak home by the narrowest of margins. The win was the Bears’ third for the season, but they are out of contention for a finals place, while Macorna is still in search of a maiden victory.
This week the Tigers at home meet an Inglewood team desperate to hold its spot in the top five, while Serp travels to high-flying Bridgewater.
MARONG’S nine-goal win over Calivil kept the Panthers in fourth place on the ladder, with Inglewood and Pyramid Hill nipping at their heels.
The Demons led at half-time and were only a goal behind at three-quarter time, but Marong pulled away with a 13-5 final term.
The Panthers’ greater experience came to the fore at the right time, leaving Calivil just hanging onto its finals hopes.
The Demons are two games and 26 per cent behind sixth-placed Pyramid Hill and need to make every post a winner to make up the gap.
They face Newbridge this week, who pushed top side Mitiamo last Saturday, while the Panthers face the Bulldogs.
PYRAMID Hill played its way back into form with a 28-goal win over Maiden Gully.
A big first quarter set the tone for the Bulldogs, who are half a game outside the finals’ spots, and they powered away in the last term, scoring 19 goals to the Eagles’ nine.
Pyramid Hill, runners up in the last two seasons to Mitiamo, are desperate to have another crack at the Superoos, but a significantly changed player list has seen the Dogs battling at the lower reaches of the five.