Round 4 Hostplus SANFLW League Match Wraps

By WARREN PARTLAND

South Adelaide’s indifferent start to the season has been shrugged aside to climb into third on the Hostplus SANFLW ladder with a 35-point win over Woodville-West Torrens.

The Panthers bagged six goals to one and had 10 more scoring shots to secure back-to-back wins after opening their season with two losses, as many minor round defeats as they tasted last year.

The Eagles have been competitive this season, but their only goal was kicked by Marlie Fiegert 15 minutes into the first quarter. They registered a rushed behind three minutes into the second quarter and did not score again until the final term.

Jess Waterhouse has been outstanding in recent weeks and she nailed two goals for the Panthers in the first quarter. Laquoiya Cockatoo-Motlop also kicked a goal in the first term, before adding another in the second as the Panthers took control.

The home side, led by Brooke Boileau with 22 possessions, seven tackles and six clearances and Caitlin Couch with 21 disposals, seven tackles and seven clearances, dominated the clearances to have the Eagles under constant pressure.

Shineah Goody was prominent for the Eagles, while Poppy Waterford finished with 11 tackles.

Sturt teenager India Rasheed’s draft currency has been further enhanced after tearing Central District apart with a spectacular performance on the spacious Elizabeth ground.

Just 17 years old, Rasheed reigned supreme in the powerful 30-point victory to finish with 36 possessions, three goals, eight tackles, five clearances and 11 marks. Simply put, she is elite and destined to be taken as a high draft pick.

Whether it was on the ball, or up forward, there were no answers from the Bulldogs to the influence of Rasheed, daughter of former tennis player and coach Roger.

Monique Bessen also shone for the Double Blues with 29 touches, although the defensive pressure from the entire side choked the Bulldogs into submission.  And up forward, Zara Walsh bagged a five-goal haul.

Such was the hunger for the contest from the Double Blues, they had seven more clearances despite losing the hit-outs 15-50 due to the dominance of Bulldogs ruck Olivia Levicki.

The Bulldogs, coming off a belting from Glenelg, kicked three goals in the first quarter and restricted the visitors to two behinds to lead by 17 points at quarter time.

However, the score was not a true reflection of the tight battle and it took the Bulldogs 11 minutes to have their first foray forward of the centre square in the second quarter.

Glenelg is alone in the penthouse looking down on pursuing rivals after overcoming West Adelaide in a highly-competitive Hostplus SANFLW clash at Hisense Stadium.

The Tigers are the only unbeaten side after four rounds following the three-point triumph, although the win was soured by an injury to in-form Ellie Kellock.

After hurting her ankle in the first quarter, Kellock was on crutches at quarter-time and will have scans to reveal the extent of the damage.

Jessica Bates was again the driving force for the Tigers, not only amassing 30 possessions, but being credited with a whopping 17 tackles.

The midfielder had plenty of support from Violet Patterson (25 disposals and 10 tackles), Piper Window and Poppy Scholz (16 and 10). Shay’Lee Dayman got through a heap of defensive work with 14 tackles.

The Bloods led early against a wasteful Tigers when Asha Dufour kicked the only goal of the opening quarter after gun duo Zoe Venning and Lauren Young were involved in the lead up work.

Window nailed her set shot from 35m for the only goal of the second quarter and the two sides continued to trade blows after half-time.

Four minutes of brilliance in the third quarter from Kiana Lee in attack sparked Norwood to a 25-point victory over North Adelaide at Hisense Stadium.

The Roosters led by four points late in the third term, before Lee went to work with three goals to lead the Redlegs to their second win of the season.

Lee started the charge when she blasted a kick from 50m towards a vacant forward line and the ball kept rolling through for a goal. She then rewarded herself for two terrific marks with accuracy from the set shots.

The first quarter was a tight affair with the Redlegs registering the only scores with two behinds.

Lauren Hoffmann nailed the first goal of the contest for the Roosters when she kicked truly on the run 13 minutes into the second quarter, and Djimila Totham added a second a few minutes later.

After failing to impact on the scoreboard in the second term, the Redlegs took control in the third term to earn the premiership points despite having one less visit inside their 50.

Julia Clark had a significant impact for the Roosters with 18 possessions and 11 tackles.