Blues, Eagles to meet in anticipated finale

THE two best Geelong & District Netball League teams since the turn of the COVID-19 pandemic meet tomorrow (Saturday, September 14) for their long-awaited Grand Final encounter at St Albans Reserve.

Winchelsea and East Geelong have been the teams to beat over the past three seasons, and while they have yet to meet in a decider during that period, both teams’ captains are ecstatic to be competing for premiership glory.

The Blues earned direct entry to the Grand Final a fortnight ago following a dramatic 19-20 win over the Eagles in the Semi-Finals, while East Geelong secured the second entry and its third consecutive Grand Final appearance with a nine-goal win over Bannockburn in the Preliminary Final.

Blues co-captain Meg Royal will lead her side into her first Grand Final as a senior player, with Winchelsea seeking its first flag since the glory days of 2010 to 2012.

She said the game would be physical but is confident Winchelsea’s netball could stack up against the minor premiers.

“East Geelong are a quality side and have been for as long as I can remember, especially at the senior level.

“It’s always a pleasure to play against them as well, there’s never a hidden agenda.

“At Winch, we always strive to get better, not only individually, but as a group as well, we’ve grown together as a group and winning a Grand Final would be the ultimate reward for years of hard work.”

There will be plenty of matchups to keep an eye on tomorrow.

Winchelsea’s defence has long been a staple of its game, led by 2022 Margaret Webb medallist Gemma Stavenuiter and Rhiannon Williams, who will have the task of limiting Shannon Pietsch and Mary Waldron.

At the other end, Eagles captain, defensive anchor and 2022 premiership skipper Stephanie Boyce will pair up in the defensive third with Sylvie Jarvis to stifle Team of the Year shooter Ebony Berg.

In the midcourt, Winchelsea playing coach Casey Carroll and Royal will duel it out against Team of the Year centre Claudia Cook and Jenelle Baker, who recently recovered from injury.

East Geelong has plenty of cause to be confident going into a Grand Final against Winchelsea, defeating the Blues in Round 8 by 10 goals and by 13 goals in Round 18.

Boyce acknowledged the sting of last year’s disappointing Grand Final loss against Werribee Centrals earlier in the week, but said her side, largely the same as last year’s, had grown over the past year.

“We’re really hungry.

“We had a taste for success, and then that five-goal loss to Werribee just flattened us and defeated us, but most of this side is the same as last year and we remember what it felt like to lose and we’re hungry again.

“Winchelsea is up there for physicality, but we don’t shy away from it either, it’s been a big focus for us this year. We’re definitely ready for a fight.”

Tomorrow’s Grand Final begins at 3.15pm.