The Tasmania Devils enjoyed a truly dominant day in round nine of the NAB League Girls, beating the Bendigo Pioneers by 106 points and keeping their season alive in the process. The Devils piled on the first 13 goals of the game at North Hobart Oval and had the result wrapped up before the visitors could even blink.
TASMANIA DEVILS: 5.5 7.9 13.13 16.17 (113)
BENDIGO PIONEERS: 0.0 0.1 0.1 1.1 (7)
Best players: Georgia Clark, Jenna Griffiths, Bellah Parker, Candice Belbin, Madi Lamb, Georgia Alomes
Tasmania’s forwards had a field day inside 50, with Georgia Clark (four goals) and Bellah Parker (three goals) combining for 14 marks and 17 scoring shots and Shania Saward kicking a tidy four goals straight. Jenna Griffiths stepped into the void left by Tasmania’s injured midfielders to finish with 19 disposals and a team-high five clearances, and she was well supported around the stoppages by Candice Belbin (15 disposals, 7 tackles) and Madi Lamb (15 disposals, 4 clearances).
The Devils bolted out of the gates and booted five goals in the first term, thanks in large part to the work of Clark. She produced one of the most impressive quarters of the NAB League season on her way to a career-best day, and she had ten touches and three goals by quarter time. After spending the majority of the season in the backline Ruby Pacey was shifted to her natural forward position and kicked her first goal of the day, as did Parker, to give the Devils a 35-point lead at the first change.
Bendigo opened their account with a behind in the second quarter, and while the Devils slowed from that torrid scoring pace they were still able to extend their lead. Parker and Amy Bissett both added goals to the tally, and Tasmania’s backline continued to stand tall at the other end. Led by the experienced trio of Georgia Alomes, Amy Prokopiec and Jemma Blair, they held Bendigo to just two scores from 15 inside 50s across the day and helped to set up a decisive 50-point half-time buffer.
Somehow, even after that explosive start, the third quarter was Tasmania’s best. Clark, Pacey, Saward and Parker all added to their goal tallies as the Devils slammed through six more unanswered goals. Their continued dominance was set up by the work of their midfield, and they would win the disposal count 294-178 and the inside 50s 56-15 by the end of the game. In the absence of Claire Ransom and Priya Bowering, Belbin and Griffiths stepped up and extracted the ball from the stoppages time and again, feeding the likes of Madison Brazendale (21 disposals, 5 marks) on the outside.
Even with a 90-point lead in hand at the last change, the Devils continued to push in the fourth quarter. Bendigo finally found their first goal early in the term, but Tasmania responded strongly and kicked the last three of the game to push the margin past 100 points. By the final siren both Clark and Parker had gone close to a setting NAB League record for score involvements, with Parker kicking 3.6 herself and Clark finishing with 24 disposals, nine marks and 4.4 in an outstanding individual display. It was a faultless performance from the Devils as a whole, ending in a 106-point win.
The equation is now simple for the Devils – if they can beat the ladder-leading Dandenong and the Geelong Falcons lose, then they will qualify for the finals. Tasmania’s clash with Dandenong will be played on Saturday May 26 at The Hangar in Tullamarine, with the first bounce at 12:00 PM.