TATURA V SHEPPARTON UNITED
Tatura will be looking to continue its charge towards the finals when it takes on Shepparton United.
The Demons can’t play finals after they dropped their game to the Swans in the second part of the split round.
That said, they will still be keen to finish the season with a couple of wins and to claim a scalp.
To this point in the season, the Demons have battled to beat the teams above them on the ladder.
Co-coach, Laura Cole continues to lead by example through the mid-court and she will look to her shooters Tamara Skinner and Diaz Barzen to try and put a winning score on the board.
Steph Gorrie and Julia Clarke were important in the win against Mansfield in the first part of the split round.
Playing coach, Elsie Boyer will be important for her team through the mid-court and if she can dictate the contest, it will allow the mid-courters to feed the goalers to enable them to put the score on the board to defeat the Demons.
Tip: Tatura.
KYABRAM V SEYMOUR
Seymour will be looking to make it two wins on the bounce and try to secure a place inside the top six.
The Lions are currently a game clear of the Swans in sixth and a win against the Bombers will put the pressure on the Swans to defeat the Bears to keep alive their season.
Kyabram has found it tough to get wins in 2024 and they suffered a heavy loss in the first part of the split round at Mooroopna.
That said, Abby Waasdorp, Isla Carver and Natasha Dodds never gave up and were the shining lights for the Bombers.
They will be important if the Bombers are to challenge the visiting Lions.
Ellie Fuhrmeister and Ruby Martin combine incredibly well in the ring, especially in a strong second half in the win over Benalla.
Eleisha Saunders and Bridie Cantwell were others to contribute to the strong win and if they can continue that good form to feed the goalers, then the Lions should walk away with the win and quite possibly their spot secured in the finals if other results fall their way.
Tip: Seymour.
MOOROOPNA V ROCHESTER
Mooroopna can lock in its place in the top two if it can overcome Rochester on its home courts.
The Cats sit at the top of the ladder with a 14-2 record and a strong percentage.
But they are likely to be missing two of their key players in Asha Gray and Dayna Williams after both were unable to finish the game against Mansfield.
They suffered ankle injuries and hopefully both have escaped major damage to avoid spending weeks out of the game.
Skipper and shooter, Ash Lancaster continued her strong form in the attacking arc for the Cats.
Jac Ball and Eliza Gesler played important foils for Lancaster when on the court.
And some of the club’s younger players were exposed by coach Di Hanslow as she prepares for the finals.
They are likely to get more court in the absence of Gray and Williams.
The Tigers have been in much better form in recent weeks and that is largely to the work of shooters Tia Webb and Teal Hocking.
The duo has been in really strong form in the past month and they will challenge the Cats defensive third.
Ellie Cuttriss celebrated her 200th A grade game with the Tigers last Saturday.
Unfortunately, the Tigers went down to their arch rival Echuca.
She will be looking to play her role to try and feed the goalers to give the visitors a chance of causing an upset.
Tip: Mooroopna.
BENALLA V EUROA
Euroa will be looking to get its season back on track after back-to-back losses that has left last year’s runner-up in third place at the start of the round.
A win for the Magpies will see them leap back into the top two and the box seat to secure the double chance heading into the final round of the home and away season on August 24.
The Bears defeated Euroa in a high-scoring arm wrestle in the first part of the split round.
No doubt the coaching group has had some time to fine tune what has gone wrong in the past two losses.
Sophie Owen, Mia Sudomirski and Eliza Hoare will be important to try and help the team back onto the winners’ list.
I think the Saints will give a good account of themselves, but the depth of Euroa is what will prove the difference in the was-up.
Tip: Euroa.
SHEPPARTON V SHEPPARTON SWANS
The Shepparton Swans know what is at stake when it plays cross-town rival Shepparton.
Win and your season is still alive. Lose and your season is done.
This won’t be an easy task as the Bears are in really good form.
They beat Euroa in a high-scoring game in the first part of the split round.
The Swans will feel their best can take it to Shepparton.
They were able to end the Demons’ season with a win in the second part of the split round last Saturday.
And, the earlier season meeting at Princess Park was a win for the Swans by two goals.
Gabby Moore, Natasha Atkinson-Brown and Ella Cirillo were important in the 11-goal win over the Demons.
Hannah Crawley, Mackenzie and Keeley O’Dwyer coupled with shooter Kim Borger proved the standouts in what was a really good team win over the highly fancied Euroa.
It will take another team effort to get past the Swans, which I think they can achieve.
Tip: Shepparton.
