DARLEY coach Shannon Blackman has praised her players’ resilience and determination to stay the course after a memorable victory over North Ballarat last Saturday.<\/p>\n
The Devils consolidated second place on the ladder behind Sunbury with a gutsy 56-48 win away from home at Mars Stadium.<\/p>\n
Following an even first quarter, the Devils made their move in the second, outscoring the Roosters 17-12 to establish a five-goal break.<\/p>\n
They were able to stave off several Rooster surges in the second half to run out impressive eight-goal winners.<\/p>\n
Another win over a bona-fide finals contender ensured the Devils head into this weekend’s bye round at 6-1-1, a game and a half behind Sunbury, but four points clear of third-placed Lake Wendouree.<\/p>\n
Blackman hailed a full-team effort by the Devils and lauded their ability to dig in when the going got tough.<\/p>\n
“Everyone played four quarters of netball,” she said.<\/p>\n
“North have always been very competitive, so it’s good getting a win against them early on in the season.<\/p>\n
“They got close to us towards the end of the third quarter, but we made a couple of changes, which worked in our favour.<\/p>\n
“We did well to keep fighting it out.”<\/p>\n
Among the most influential of the changes, the Devils subbed Maddison Bosio on at key moments of the game with great effect.<\/p>\n
Top contributors in the win included goal defence Anna Lawley, goal shooter Olivia Cawthray and midcourter Lucy Taylor.<\/p>\n
Playing only her second game of the season, Blackman said the Devils’ season was tracking nicely, with only the one blemish so far against Sunbury.<\/p>\n
The Devils, who were without their coach and also Cawthray in that game, trailed the Lions by only five goals at half time before eventually losing by 21 points.<\/p>\n
They will get another crack at the reigning premiers on 21 June, but must first negotiate East Point in round nine at Darley.<\/p>\n
“We are going well \u2013 everyone is enjoying it,” Blackman said.<\/p>\n
“Looking at the ladder, most of the games among the top teams have been pretty tight. Anything could happen really.”<\/p>\n
North Ballarat coach Annie McCartin said she was happy with her team’s effort, given the absences of defender Milly Simpson and midcourter Gina McCartin.<\/p>\n
“We gave Maggie Smith her first game in A-grade and she did a great job,” she said.<\/p>\n
“Credit to Darley, they are a lovely team and play some beautiful netball.<\/p>\n
“But given the players we had out, I was reasonably happy with the performance.”<\/p>\n
Goal shooter Maddy Selmon (43 goals at 93.48 per cent) was the Roosters’ standout, while McCartin further praised the efforts of goal attack Poppy Douglass and midcourter Stacey Matthews.<\/p>\n
“Our attack was very well guarded by the Darley girls, so I thought those girls did a great job to produce what they did,” she said.<\/p>\n
The loss was the Roosters’ third this season and has them uncharacteristically in sixth place after eight rounds, with Bacchus Marsh moving into fifth spot after a 32-goal win over Sebastopol.<\/p>\n
At Melton, powerhouse goal shooter Rebecca Hicks topped the 100-goal mark in Sunbury’s big win over the Bloods.<\/p>\n
Hicks contributed 104 goals in a 108-29 Lions win.<\/p>\n
Round 8 recap: Bacchus Marsh 51 def Sebastopol 19; Redan 67 def Ballarat 30; East Point 39 lost to Lake Wendouree 62; North Ballarat 48 lost Darley 56; Melton 29 lost to Sunbury 108.<\/p>\n
Round 9 (June 14): Ballarat v Melton; Darley v East Point; Lake Wendouree v Redan; Sebastopol v North Ballarat; Sunbury v Bacchus Marsh.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DARLEY coach Shannon Blackman has praised her players’ resilience and determination to stay the course after a memorable victory over North Ballarat last Saturday. The Devils consolidated second place on the ladder behind Sunbury with a gutsy 56-48 win away from home at Mars Stadium. Following an even first quarter, the Devils made their move […]<\/p>\n