No margin for error

One of the most evenly-fought home and away seasons of A grade Ovens and King netball is close to wrapping up, and with two matches left, it’s still unclear who will make up the finals series. Milawa’s got the minor premiership locked in, Tarrawingee and Whorouly are fighting for the second chance, and Bonnie Doon and Goorambat will almost certainly make the cut. The real watch is between Bright, currently sitting sixth, and Moyhu, just two points behind in seventh. Bright will need to pick up the points against Whorouly this weekend and King Valley in round 20 to guarantee their place in finals without having to hold out hope of results falling in their favour – lose, and they’ll be praying the Hoppers get towelled up by Tarrawingee and the Lions. Coach Ash Grimes said to even be in the conversation for a finals berth was an incredible accomplishment for the side, which has finished eighth or lower in the last three seasons. “It’s been a great season, it’s been such a tight competition,” she said. “We’ve got nine girls this year who have that really strong team ethic and work ethic, they’re happy to put in the time and training and want to learn and want to improve. “I think that makes a huge difference when you’ve got girls who want to work – it makes my job as coach really easy when they turn up every week wanting to be the best versions of themselves “We’re all capable of playing positions outside of our comfort zone and doing whatever’s best for the team, I think that’s been our strongest point this year. “Our defensive end and our full-court defensive unit, our one-on-one defence, is something we’ve really focussed on this year, and it’s been one of our strongest points.” Shooter Emily Nightingale has been a revelation for Bright, currently the third-highest goal shooter in the league with 452 to her name. She’ll have a tough task ahead of her this weekend, in the midst of Whorouly’s near-impenetrable defensive set-up. But Bright has proved they have what it takes, defeating the Lions when they first met back in round two. “They’ve had an absolutely amazing season since then, in the first few rounds every team’s working themselves out and getting used to each other,” Grimes said of Whorouly. “We do take the confidence knowing we did it last time and came on strong, but it feels like a new game against a new team because we really don’t know what’s going to come out on the court.” In other matches this weekend, the Hoppers will hope for a win over Tarrawingee to keep their finals dreams alive, the Hawks head up to Whitfield to face up against the Roos, the Bats will square off with Benalla All Blacks, and it’s a grand final rematch when Greta takes on Bonnie Doon.

No margin for error

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