Keilor continues to enjoy the challenges of the Northern Football League division 1 women’s competition.
After being a dominant team in their first season in the combined Essendon District and Western Region football league competition, the Blues have been pushed all the way this season.
They sit on top of the ladder, but coach Emma Kerry said they aren’t the red hot favourites they were 12 months ago.
“It’s a little surprising, we didn’t know what would happen,” she said of this year.
“There’s some quality teams and we’re happy with how we’re going. With Bendigo we are 1-1 and against the Spurs [VU] it has been close in every game.
“It’s definitely anyone’s game at this point of time. Finishing on top of the ladder will give us a smoother ride through finals.”
Kerry said one of the biggest lessons from this season is how to handle the pressure when they are challenged.
The Blues won every game last season and being behind in games is something new.
“They’re really enjoying the challenge,” she said. “They’re learning things in a game sense that I can’t teach them.
“The Bendigo game [which they lost] we learnt so much in that game. We’d never been behind, let alone lost a match.
“We got going and ended up winning the last quarter.”
On Sunday, the Blues faced VU Spurs. The Blues have won the two previous games against the Spurs by less than a goal and Kerry was keen to see whether the gap had increased.
It was another thriller, the Blues won 2.9 (21)- 3.2 (20).
Kerry said one of the most pleasing things so far this season, was the development of the younger players coming through.
She said Shenay Thomas, Jessie Cameron, Lauren Caruso and Erin Bult had benefited from being around the senior program.
The latter of the two are both also part of Essendon’s VFLW team. The standouts have been the Wright sisters yet again.
Sarah Wright won the league best and fairest last season, while her twin sister Gemma Wright finished third.
The two sit first and second in the coaches votes this year.
Kerry said despite the two having offers to play at a higher level, they were happy to play the season out with the Blues.
“They’ve gone up a level and grown some more,” she said. “They’re only going to get better and are good quality girls. They could be playing VFLW.
“It wouldn’t surprise me if they were on the AFLW radar, they were last year.
“A few teams were keen on them last year and were interested to see how they went this year.”
In other games, the Blues second side lost to the Sunbury Kangaroos in the EDFL women’s competition.
The Blues men’s side had a good win against Strathmore, winning 11.14 (80)-8.13 (61).
Dean Galea kicked three goals in the win, while Zak Wunhym was named best on ground.
In division 1, Taylors Lakes and Hillside both suffered losses, while Burnside Heights lost to Coburg Districts in division 2.
