A potential Grand Final preview was played in this round, with ladder-leader, Glenorchy taking on second-placed Clarence. In Round 18, it was the Roos who came out on top, but the Magpies will certainly want revenge in the finals. Meanwhile, third-placed Launceston got the perfect preparation for finals with a big win over cellar-dwellers, Burnie.

LAUNCESTON 4.10 | 7.15 | 9.17 | 13.20 (98)
BURNIE 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 (2)

GOALS:

Launceston: B. Rattray 5, A. Dickson 2, D. Taylor 2, E. Manix-geeves 2, M. Binns, M. Radford
Burnie: Nil.

BEST:

Launceston: M. King, A. Dickson, B. Rattray, C. Thuringer, N. Ristrom, C. Stanley
Burnie: L. Haines, L. Stevenson, E. Duncombe, K. Johnson, L. Badcock, C. Chandler

Launceston jumped out of the blocks early in this game, scoring four goals to none in the first quarter. However, the Blues could have put more damage on the board had they kicked accurate. They kicked 10 behinds in the first quarter alone but bounced back in the second with 3.5, while only restricting Burnie to one point at the main break. In the second quarter, Launceston continued to pile the scoring pressure on the Dockers. While the Blues were only restricted to two goals in the third term, they made amends of it in the last, kicking four goals to end with a 96-point victory.

Brie Rattray did a lot of the damage up forward with five majors while Angela Dickson, Dearne Taylor and Emma Manix-Geeves chipped in with two. Dickson and Rattray were also named among the best but the shining light was Tasmania’s only Under-18 All Australian representative, Mia King. King was named best on ground in the loss against the Dockers, making it her fourth time among the better players on the ground. Another Under 18 representative was named best on ground for the Dockers with Libby Haines taking top honours. State teammate, Lauren Stevenson also played a good game for Burnie, being named second-best in the loss.

GLENORCHY 0.1 | 2.4 | 2.4 | 3.7 (25)
CLARENCE 1.4 | 2.4 | 6.6 | 6.8 (44)

GOALS:

Glenorchy: N. Lynch 2, S. Eaton.
Clarence: S. Pennicott 2, J. Minifie, J. Farrow, D. Elliston, N. Pearce.

BEST:

Glenorchy: E. Barwick, G. Sullivan, N. Daniels, B. Barwick, J. Williams, T. Corrie
Clarence: S. Pennicott, M. Smith, N. Bresnehan, J. Limbrick, L. Ochayi, B. Scott

Ladder-leader, Glenorchy was dealt with a wake-up call in this game, and it came straight away in the first quarter when Clarence got the first goal on the board and took the early lead. The Magpies then responded in the second, outscoring the Roos two goals to one to level up the scores at half time. But Clarence put the foot on the accelerator in the third quarter, keeping Glenorchy scoreless while also kicking four goals. This gave the Roos a 26-point lead at the last break, making it very difficult for the Magpies to make a comeback. To their credit, they outscored the Roos in the last quarter by keeping them scoreless and kicking one goal themselves, but by then, the damage was already done.

Sophie Pennicott made it 13 goals from 13 games for Clarence when she kicked two goals on the weekend. Pennicott was also named best on ground in the win, making it her sixth time in the best. The rest of the goals came from Under 18 duo, Jessica Minifie and Jenna Farrow as well as Darcy Elliston and Natalie Pearce. Surprisingly, the second highest goal kicker in the competition, Jacinta Limbrick didn’t get a major on the board, but she was still named in the best. She was complemented by Maddison Smith, Nicole Bresnehan, Loveth Ochayi and Bronte Scott. Nietta Lynch completed her wonderful season in front of goal by kicking two for Glenorchy. She finished the regular season on top of the goal kicking table with 34 goals from 14 games. Sandy Eaton was the other goal kicker for the Magpies. Elise Barwick was the most impressive Magpie in the game while Gennaveve Sullivan and Natalie Daniels also had good games.