By Tara Murray
There was disappointment, coupled with a sense of pride, for Keilor after its Northern Football League women’s division 1 grand final loss.
In their first season in the NFL competition, the Blues didn’t know what to expect. Yes, they had come off a premiership in the Essendon District and Western Region Football League, but this was going up another level.
They took it all before them, winning the minor premiership and qualifying as the first team through to the grand final.
Unfortunately their run came to an end against Bendigo in the grand final.
Bendigo was a step ahead of the Blues all day and it showed on the scoreboard.
The Thunder produced their best performance of the season, to claim the premiership 7.7 (49)-1.4 (10).
Blues coach Emma Kerry said there were mixed feelings after the match.
“It’s never nice to lose, especially a grand final,” she said.
“Bendigo was switched on from the beginning and it was their best game all year from what I’ve observed.
“My girls can hold their heads up high. Full credit to Bendigo and their coaching staff.”
The Thunder did all the attacking in the first quarter, before the Blues found a bit more of the ball in the second but weren’t able to hit the score.
It was much of the same in the second half.
She said they weren’t disappointed with how they played, they were just beaten by a better side on the day.
“We weren’t playing bad, things just weren’t going our way on the day,” Kerry said.
“They shut down both Wright sisters. Sarah had a head knock in the first quarter and she struggled to recover from that.
“For my girls there’s a lot of celebrating for a season that has definitely had more ups than downs.
“I’m just proud of them making it this far … I couldn’t envisage this at the start of the year.”
Kerry said Rachael Knight was clearly best on ground for the Blues and dominated in the ruck. American Jess Blecher was the other standout.
In the end, the Thunder had more contributors.
“I had some sore girls the last couple of weeks,” Kerry said.
“The Wright sisters haven’t stopped all year and haven’t trained with the team the last couple of weeks.
“It meant other girls had to stand up. Unfortunately for us, we weren’t able to get the contributors across the board like Bendigo.”
The season overall has been a successful one for the Blues women’s teams. They fielded two open age sides and their under-18 girls made the grand final. Kerry said there was plenty of support from the club.
“Our club is 141-years old and traditionally it’s a men’s club,” she said. “They have really embraced women’s football … it’s gone from strength to strength.
“Hopefully we’ll have something sustainable at Keilor. Having so many 18-year-olds out there is something to be proud of.”
