Aussie rep Cawthray hopingit’s fourth time lucky for Devils

DARLEY goaler Olivia Cawthray will be aiming to do more than just sink another big goal haul in this Saturday’s BFNL A-grade grand final against Sunbury.

The easy-going 21-year-old and soon to be Australian representative also wants to sink her and the club’s grand final hoodoo.

This is the fourth straight year Darley has advanced to the premiership decider.

Unfortunately for the Devils, they have come up short on each previous occasion.

In a case of so near, yet so far, the last two in particular have hurt.

The Devils were beaten by two goals by North Ballarat in 2023, and by three against Sunbury last season.

Cawthray, a key in for the Devils in last weekend’s 47-55 preliminary final victory over North Ballarat with 43 goals, played in each of the last two grand final losses, but missed the first one against the Roosters in 2022 with an ACL injury.

She will have redemption on her mind when she lines up against Sunbury this Saturday.

“Hopefully number four – that’s lucky, right? Cawthray said.

“I hope it is for us.

“We’re very excited to be there. North gave it a good shot (last Saturday), but I was glad we pulled through after a few nervous moments.”

The Devils will take plenty of confidence into the premiership decider.

They are the only team to have beaten Sunbury this season, while the margin was only three goals when they last met in week one of the finals.

Cawthray said being able to execute under pressure would be the key for the Devils this Saturday.

“We just have to stick to our game plan, settle and trust that we know what we are doing,” she said.

“When we are all supporting each other, that’s when we play our best netball – going out and having fun.

“Sunbury is obviously an amazing team, so it’s not going to be easy.

“But we give ourselves every chance if we play our best.”

Cawthray was proud to see three of the Devils’ netball teams involved in grand finals, with B and D-grades also lining up against Sunbury.

 

Win, lose or draw, the grand final will not be the end for Cawthray this netball season, following her selection in the Australian mixed team to play in a three-match test series in England next month.

Picked on the strength of her form at this year’s nationals in April and a training camp in Canberra last month, the Devils sharpshooter is still pinching herself over her selection.

“It’s kind of crazy – I don’t really believe it,” Cawthray said.

“But I am very excited about it.

“In my dreams I thought I might have represented Australia, but not in my reality.”

Playing alongside her Darley coach Shannon Blackman in the Victorian Mixed Netball Association this year, Cawthray said the strength of the competition and different style of netball had enhanced her game.

“There is a really big difference between playing with the girls versus the guys,” she said.

“They are all uniquely difficult in their own ways.

“But I find playing against guys, they are a lot faster and a lot more athletic.

“You have to be very smart with how you handle the ball, whereas I feel with the girls, it’s very strategy-based and probably a bit smarter netball.

“But it’s all amazing and it’s all got to be implemented well, so I feel like I learned a lot from the mixed.”

Cawthray will leave for the UK on 13 October and will do some travel at the end of her national team commitments.

A year of accolades for Cawthray has included selection in the VNL 23-and-under Team of the Year and the Hot Shot Award as the state-league competition’s leading goal scorer with North East Blaze.

Those honours were announced last month on VNL grand final night.

After dominating the regular season with an ultra-impressive 17-1 record, the Blaze surprisingly missed out on playing in the grand final, eliminated by eventual premier Melbourne University Lightning on preliminary final night.

Cawthray said the individual accolades would not have been possible without the support and efforts of her teammates.

“The girls around me were so amazing. They definitely made me look a lot better than I actually was,” she said.

“It helps when everyone is feeding it to me so amazingly, it makes my life very easy.

“It was a bit of a stinger not to win it (the premiership), but there’s always next year.”

Cawthray’s re-signing with the Blaze’s 23-and-under team has already been secured.