Round 4 Womens Non-Contact Match Report by Cathy

On Saturday 17th May, the Eastern Warriors played host to three women’s masters games at Edinburgh Reserve in Springvale. The first of these was the grudge match – between Eastern Warriors Yellow and Eastern Warriors Black.
Coach Sue ensured the teams were evenly balanced before the game got underway. The first quarter got off to a flying start, with Sandra dominating in the ruck, and Susie roving the tap down to get the ball quickly to the forward line. This resulted in a few goals kicked to the southern end in the first quarter. 
The second quarter saw Libby and Doc face off in the ruck, which evened up the ruck contest. We got some excellent midfield efforts and link-up play throughout the second quarter. In particular, Sunny had some accurate passes into the forward line, showing the spectators and her mum just how much she has improved. The wind picked up which meant some of the shots for goal weren’t quite on target, but that gave opportunity for some set play with kicks out of defence. Sue was watching carefully for her teammates to lead into space and to avoid kicking to unfavourable match-ups. Libby and Charlie both worked hard to get to the ball and move it forward. Jodie up forward was looking to get into position and have some shots on goal.
The final quarter saw Sue and Susie into the ruck, and proved that Susie just doesn’t know when to take it easy and not leap too high in the ruck. Kirsty continued to be involved and put in effort right until the end, she knows how to give a consistent performance for the whole game. The game continued as a tight, seesawing match.
Everyone put in a 4 quarter effort and it was really great to see our latest training – evasive tactics – being put into practice. Thankfully the worst of the weather stayed away during our match and we even got a glimpse of the sun.
A huge shout out to everyone who was involved in making our match a success, as well as assisting in our whole day of hosting games. It was a real team effort!

Round 4 Over 35s Match Report by Lou

Tough Day at the Office, But Spirits High 
It was a great day for football — sun shining, a light breeze, and not too hot. Despite the rain the day before, the ground held up reasonably well. 
We were up against our old rivals, Dingley. Once again, we were short on numbers due to injuries and player unavailability. Still, I went into the match with a positive mindset. If we could play our style and give it a red-hot crack, you just never know what might happen. 
Fortunately, Dingley kindly lent us a couple of players, which we really appreciated. We also had a couple of our club legends from the 50s step in to help, which was fantastic. 
The first quarter saw us still settling into our matchups. But we didn’t get flustered or blown away, which was a credit to the group. In the second half of the quarter, we found our rhythm and even managed to hit the scoreboard.
Score at quarter-time: 4.3–27 to 1.0–6. 
With a few changes and some encouraging words, we headed back out for the second quarter. Jules was strong in the middle, O’Bee worked tirelessly, and the backline battled hard to keep us in it. We pushed forward a few times and were unlucky not to convert, but Dingley were just too quick in transition.
Half-time score: 10.6–66 to 1.3–9. 
There’s not much more a coach can ask than for the team to give 100%, so that was the message at the break. The opposition had the upper hand, but to our credit, we kept fighting. Heads didn’t drop. Players like Johnny S, Bubbles, David H, Pete B, Lil Pete, and our big defenders Matty A and Jeff gave it everything. We strung together some good passages of play, which shows what we’re capable of moving forward.
Three-quarter time: 16.12–108 to 1.3–9. 
In the final quarter, we lost Kris to a knee injury and one of our loan players pulled a calf, leaving us with no bench. Thankfully, Matty D jumped in to help out, showing true team spirit. 
We started the last term with some structure changes as many players were running on fumes. Yet, they dug deep and kept going. We even threw Herry – who’s never played a game in defence before – into defence. He took on a tagging role against their fastest forward, found the ball a few times, and even landed a few tackles. That’s what it’s all about. 
At the final siren, every player could walk off with their heads held high. The effort was enormous, and I tip my hat to the entire group. The standouts included Jules, O’Bee, Bubbles, Johnny S, Dave H, Jamie J, Tony, and Kris (before his injury), but honestly, the whole team gave it everything for each other.
Final score: 21.16–142 to 1.3–9. 

Injuries: Kris – knee 
Jamie – knock to the jaw
And finally—great to see Bubbles stayed on the field and didn’t get sent off!



Round 4 Over 50s Match Report coming soon… bloody work.