Dragons of old emergein big win over Bloods

SANDHURST delivered a timely reminder of its quality with a 43-goal victory over South Bendigo at Harry Trott Oval last Saturday.

Playing at full strength for the first time this season, the Dragons rebounded from a loss against Kangaroo Flat to defeat the Bloods 75-32.

It was the Sandhurst of old in a breathtaking second quarter as the Dragons turned an 11-goal lead at quarter-time into a 32-point advantage at half-time with a 26-5 burst.

After an even third quarter, the Dragons again flexed their muscles with a 20-10 final term to cap an emphatic win.

Underlining their dominance all over the court, the Dragons restricted the Bloods to just 11 first-half goals in the absence of star goal shooter Gabe Richards.

Dragons coach Tamara Gilchrist said it was a performance where pretty much everything went right for the Dragons.

“It was the first time all season we’ve had everyone available, which was great,” she said.

“We had (defender) Ruby Turner back as the Vixens reserves had a bye and Ollie (Heather Oliver) was back from injury.

“It was great to have a full squad and be able to rotate everybody through and see what works and what we need to work on.

“It was comfortable having the whole defence line back – there was a lot of trust out there.”

The win was highlighted by top performances in the midcourt by Shae Clifford and Meg Williams and Bec Smith in attack.

Smith shot nearly 90 per cent of the Dragons’ goals for the match.

“It’s hard to go past the defenders too. We did restrict them to 11 goals in a half, so they did a super job,” Gilchrist said.

At 3-1 and the only blemish being a 10-goal loss to premiership favourites Kangaroo Flat, Gilchrist said she was pleased with her side’s early-season progress, given the absence of key personnel most weeks.

“I know we didn’t win (the previous week), but it certainly felt like a win,” she said.

“The two players we had out we feel are better than 10-goal players.

“It probably won’t be until finals that we put a full side out on court again and be awesomely competitive, but we were happy with the results of both A and A-res against Kangaroo Flat.”

The Dragons, who have a break this weekend due to the split round, are eagerly looking forward to their next game on May 24 – a blockbuster clash against Gisborne at the QEO.

They have lost their past four games against the Bulldogs, including the 2023 grand final and last year’s qualifying final.

“We’re super excited – we love these tough games – and it’s another chance to see where we are at,” Gilchrist said.

“We won’t be at full strength again, but that gives opportunities to other players.”

Two players who have certainly grasped their chances this season are midcourter Darcy Williams and goaler Kelsey Ralph, who have slotted full-time into the A-grade rotation.

“Darcy is doing a great job at WD. We are going to lose Meg (Williams) for four or five weeks – she is travelling – so we needed to bring in a midcourter, who could cover all three positions,” Gilchrist said.

“A full-time step up into A-grade has been really exciting for her and a nice challenge.

“Kelsey Ralph has also come up and slotted into that goal ring as a third goaling option and has also done well.”

In games to complete the split round this Saturday, Eaglehawk (1-2-1) and Strathfieldsaye (1-3) clash in a rematch of last season’s elimination finals, and Kangaroo Flat (3-0) hosts Golden Square (0-4).