By Marcus Uhe
The six combatants to contest the upcoming Outer East Football Netball A Grade netball finals series appear to be set with five weeks of competition remaining.
This follows ROC blowing a golden opportunity to apply pressure to the incumbent place-holders on Saturday afternoon.
Despite holding Mt Evelyn to its second-lowest score of the season in wet, slippery conditions at Officer Recreation Reserve, ROC threw-away a three-goal half time lead and with it, a potential major boilover in cold conditions was extinguished.
ROC scored just 12 goals after half time in the 36-28 loss, falling victim to the stringent defence applied by the Rovers that has made them a powerhouse in the competition over recent seasons.
Heavy rain fell in the second quarter as ROC’s Kaelah and Isabella O’Shanassy made a concerted effort to deny sharpshooter Rory Barr opportunities in the Rovers’ goal circle.
Conditions made handling the ball and staying on their feet a difficult task for both sides, but ROC appeared better suited, and took a three-goal lead into the long break.
Winning the one-percenters and making the important extra effort plays were celebrated by the ROC faithful huddled under the shelter at the netball courts, but the end of the rain saw a shift in momentum during the second half.
A six-goal ROC lead midway through the third quarter was wiped by the Rovers over the next six minutes of play, thanks to an unanswered seven-goal run.
11 of the final 13 goals of the quarter saw Mt Evelyn turn for home three goals ahead, and nine of the first 11 of the final term saw them stamp their authority on the contest, running away with the eight-goal win.
It leaves ROC with a mountain of work in its final five games to climb into sixth position, needing at least two wins to tie on points Emerald, while hoping results do not go the Bombers’ way.
However, with remaining contests against Narre Warren, Pakenham and Monbulk, ROC needs to take every opportunity they can get.
Saturday’s win would have closed the gap to just four points, given Emerald’s 59-50 loss to Narre Warren.
The Magpies flew out of the gates with the first six goals against Emerald, and took a nine-goal lead into the first break, but was forced to fight off a late Bombers fightback in the last quarter.
Emerald cut four goals off Narre Warren’s lead heading into the final term, and cut the lead to two goals midway through the last quarter to give the Magpies a fright.
But the Magpies showed their championship winning qualities in the face of adversity by fighting off the Bombers’ charge, scoring five consecutive goals in a ruthless two-minute stretch to put the result beyond doubt.
Gabrielle Dwyer returned to the Narre Warren lineup for the first time since nine, as Grace Ioelu, Chelsea Tonna and Piuti Laban shared the scoring duties with Erin Bell not in the side.
Madison Taylor and Krista Tomlinson were among Emerald’s best players as Kaylah Loulanting shot 34 goals.
Narre Warren is now two games clear at the top of the table and is best-placed to secure top spot, thanks to Wandin’s shock 53-48 loss to Monbulk.
The Hawks’ win made it seven in a row, leading at every change against the 2023 runners up and not looking back on their way to a huge result in the context of the season.
Narre Warren can all but secure top spot in round 15’s clash with Wandin at Wandin, should the Magpies defeat ROC next week.
The door also reopens for Mt Evelyn and Monbulk, meanwhile, to leapfrog Wandin and claim second place, now just two points adrift of the Bulldogs, while Pakenham continues to hover dangerously in fifth, trailing Wandin by just four points.
Pakenham continued Berwick Springs’ season of misery in a 80-5 demolition, the first instance a team has been held to single figures in A-Grade netball this season.
A seesawing battle at Olinda Ferny Creek saw the lead change hands five times in the second half as the Bloods chased down a four-goal deficit in the final minutes to steal a remarkable win at home.
Trailing 40-44 with 5.40 remaining, Olinda Ferny Creek nailed the final seven goals of the afternoon to power home with a 47-44.
At the time, four goals was the largest lead of the afternoon, and coming on the back of a five-goal run from Gembrook Cockatoo, the Brookers appeared on track for a second consecutive win, but the opportunity slipped through their fingertips in costly fashion.
Upwey Tecoma, meanwhile, downed Woori Yallock in a Tiger on Tiger contest.
