Tara Murray
The Western Jets have the chance to make history on Friday night as they play in the NAB League Girls grand final.
After dropping their first match of the season to Tasmania, the Jets have gone on a nine game winning streak to win through to the grand final.
It’s the first time the Jets’ girls team has made the grand final. They will be going for the club’s first premiership, with the boys side yet to taste premiership glory. They have twice made the grand final, in 1992 and 1993.
Jets coach Robbie Chancellor said the whole playing group was looking forward to the opportunity.
“It’s a very exciting time for the club,” he said. “We’ve won nine in a row and we’re now into a grand final.
“We’ll try and get the girls to enjoy the week and the sentiment, but we’re not going to just to play in a grand final. We want to win it.”
The Jets won through to the grand final after defeating the Eastern Ranges for a second successive week.
It was a low scoring affair, with neither team able to kick a goal in the first quarter.
The Jets were able to kick two goals in each of the middle two quarters, to lead by 21 points at the last break.
Despite not scoring in the last quarter, the Jets did enough to seal the 4.5 (29)-2.4 (16).
Chancellor said it was a very different game to the previous match.
“It was a bit windy and it was played under lights,” he said. “It was a bit more combative. They’re a very physical side and we were able to match it with them and then wore them down on the outside with our run.”
Cailitn Sargent kicked two of her side’s fours goals to continue her good season.
It was Montana Ham who shone brightest. She had 29 possessions, four marks, nine tackles, four hit outs and seven inside 50s.
“I think that’s what you call beast mode,” Chancellor said of Ham’s performance.
“It was a new level. These finals games you see the character of the players and she was clearly the best player on the field.”
This season has been new ground for the Jets. From Jets’ first season in 2017 to 2021, the Jets had won just eight games total.
Chancellor said they were excited by the chance to make a piece of history.
The Jets will face the Dandenong Stingrays in the grand final on Friday night at 7.30pm, after the Stingrays beat the Geelong Falcons.
In a twist, which Chancellor hopes will help the side, the two teams haven’t played each other this season.
“They haven’t lost a game this year,” he said. “They are the form team and deserve to be favourites.
“They’ve got a lot of talented midfielders. We’re hoping there’s an element of surprise as they haven’t seen our game style which is a bit different to other sides.”
If the occasion wasn’t already special the grand final is being played at Avalon Airport Oval, which is in the heart of the Jets region.
Chancellor is hoping that those in the west will come out and support the girls.
