Devils defeat the Lions in BFLW

DARLEY has extended its recent dominance over Redan, defeating the Lions by 23 points under lights in their Sir Doug Nicholls Round match at Darley Park last Saturday.

The 6-1 Devils shot a game clear of both Bacchus Marsh and Redan (5-2) at the top of the ladder with a clinical 7.12 (54) to 4.7 (31) victory.

It was Darley’s third straight win over the Lions, two of them coming in this season’s home and away rounds, the other in last year’s grand final.

Redan won the fierce rivals’ last two home and away contests in 2025.

In a strange quirk in the draw, the Devils and Lions are set to clash again on 14 June, following a league bye the previous weekend.

In the meantime, Redan will front up against league newcomers Ballarat this Sunday, while the Devils will have a bye.

A collected Darley coach Danyel Waters hailed the win as a ‘mixed bag, with the Devils not at their best at various stages of the game.

 

“Redan struggled with numbers and were obviously without their coach (Tim Meaney), who was coaching the under-18s interleague, so we ended up playing with 14,” she said.

“I thought that would have given us some more space, but I wasn’t overly thrilled with how our structure held up.

“It was pretty congested.

“But I always back our girls in terms of their conditioning and fitness and ability to run out the game and that’s how we ended up winning, it certainly wasn’t because of our goal scoring accuracy.

“That continues to be a bit of pain-point … getting goals under pressure.

“Positively, we had a new ruck in Emily Brady who debuted and a new midfielder in Melina Ciavarella from Williamstown Seagulls. She played a practice match with us earlier in the season but has been out with injury.

“She played beautifully.”

Brady, who has landed at Darley via Sunbury, comes with a basketball background and hopes are she will gel quickly with the Devils’ band of strong midfielders.

Among them, former Western Bulldog Trinity Skenderis produced another best on ground display, capping off her hard work around the ground with two goals while earning praise from her coach.

“Trinity is just an absolute wonder to watch,” Waters said.

“She is the most graceful footballer I have ever watched and had the pleasure to coach.

“Not only has she got the speed, but she has such beautiful composure.

“I just know that every time she goes near the football, I have no pangs of anxiety; I know she’s going to do something awesome with it.”

Others to shine for the Devils included Zaylie Le Huray, Emmerson Hitch, Ruby Thomas, Sharni Battye and Tayla Debono, with the latter working herself nicely back into touch after a delayed start to the season.

“Tayla was away for a month and had her first game back against Carisbrook (the previous week), but is just finding her feet after a month off footy,” Waters said. “But she really impressed with her drive and forward pressure and her leadership was excellent.

“She got herself a goal and had a little bit of a cartwheel celebration, which we loved.

“That’s the fun about coaching women’s football … when they realise there is still joy to be found in the game.”

Redan slipped to third, but can look forward to the return of not only their coach, but plenty of key personnel in the coming weeks.

Rose Russell, who kicked two of the team’s four goals, Una Laughton-Jones, Emma van Egmond, Ellen Werts, Hayley Reid and Rebecca Van Oorschot were all prominent.

The Lions found more of their groove as the game wore on, with all but two points of their score in an improved second-half.

At Maddingley Park, Bacchus Marsh made the leap into second spot with an 82-point win over fifth-placed East Point.

The Cobras, boosted by four goals apiece to captain Amy Garofalo and Isabella Faralla, won 14.12 (96) to 2.2 (14).

Indi Stanley, Remy Day, Ella Bradbury, Kavalyn Raverty, Faralla and Garofalo excelled for the Cobras, who moved to 5-2 with a healthy percentage of 371.61.

Larissa Murphy (one goal), Jemma Costigan, Rebecca Piper, Millie Stewart, Amy Johnston, Holly Bernath battled away best for the Dragons, who continue to be heavily impacted by injuries, but will look to rebound against Carisbrook this Sunday.

Ballarat won by forfeit over Lake Wendouree.

Round 9 (May 31): Bacchus Marsh v Lake Wendouree; Ballarat v Redan; Carisbrook v East Point.