ROUND 14  of the Northern Territory Football League (NTFL) Women’s saw some interesting results, with not much turnover of ladder positions despite some key wins. Waratah had a week off this week thanks to a third consecutive forfeit from Big River Hawks.

PINT 2.2 | 4.3 | 6.4 | 8.5 (53)
WANDERERS 2.1 | 2.2 | 4.3 | 5.4 (34)

GOALS

Pint: J. Downey 2, C. Evans 2, C. Morris, E. Greaves, K. Smits, K. Streader.
Wanderers: S. De Satge 2, L. Lloyd, S. Armitstead, T. Davern.

BEST

Pint: N/A
Wanderers: S. Armitstead, G. Halkitis, T. Davern, M. Johnston, S. De Satge

Pint were clinical against the Wanderers this round, booting a goal for every one the Wanderers did and creating a real chase of a game to register their sixth win of the season. While they still sit below the Eagles on less wins, this is a big one for the Queen Ants’ confidence after a close loss to Nightcliff last round. It was a relatively even start before Pint managed to pull away in the second, making the most of their opportunities with ball in hand and finding some good space inside 50. The second quarter was clinical, and while Pint conceded three goals from the Eagles while booting four in the second half, it was really that second quarter effort that pushed them over the line. Wanderers’ Shekeine De Satge was impactful as ever with two goals on the board but it was the form of Pint’s Jacqueline Downey and Cara Evans who both kicked two that provided a nice buffer for the home side. Wanderers named Sophie Armitstead in the bests this week, booting a major and using her game smarts to find the ball, though was caught off guard at times by a lively Pint outfit. Wanderers are sure to be ruing this missed opportunity to leap into the top five, still even with Nightcliff on wins and losses making for a very interesting run home. 

DARWIN BUFFETTES 4.1 | 6.4 | 8.4 | 13.5 (83)
ST MARY’S 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.1 (7)

GOALS

Darwin Buffettes: T. Hart-Aluni 4, J. Dodsworth 4, D. Ah Wang 3, M. Taylor, D. Carbone.
St Mary’s: N/A.

BEST

Darwin Buffettes: J. Dodsworth, T. Hart-Aluni, J. Iacono, K. Duggan, D. Carbone
St Mary’s: N/A

The Buffs never looked like losing this round, back to their old tricks with a phenomenal 76-point victory over St Mary’s. The Saints seemed shellshocked, unable to cope with the wealth of talent across the field on top of the forward pressure the Buffettes so easily apply. Three Buffettes took home a bag of goals, with Tayla Hart-Aluni and Johanna Dodsworth leading the charge on four, while Delsey Ah Wang booted three. Dodsworth and Hart-Aluni were listed in the best once more and for good reason, while familiar names in Kylie Duggan and Dominique Carbone also graced the list thanks to an overall dominant team effort. For the Saints, Nikita Long was consistent as ever while Sharna Edwards did her best despite the onslaught.

PALMERSTON MAGPIES 2.1 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 5.3 (33)
SOUTHERN DISTRICTS 2.1 | 3.5 | 4.5 | 6.7 (43)

GOALS

Palmerston Magpies: A. Moreen 3, J. Brock, F. Puruntatameri.
Southern Districts: E. Miller 2, K. Patterson, A. Lewis, M. Breed, M. Moussa.

BEST

Palmerston Magpies: Y. Roe, N. Medbury, A. Moreen, B. Byers, T. May, J. Brock
Southern Districts: T. Holtze, B. Hayne, A. Lewis, H. Engelhardt, C. Deegan

Palmerston are another side that will be frustrated with missed opportunities this week after going down to Southern Districts in a relatively tight occasion. While it wasn’t the highest scoring game of the round, it was a tight defensive effort from both sides that really highlighted the toughness of this match-up. While Districts got away with the lead at every change, Magpies were never far behind – mostly just one goal behind, if that, with an uncharacteristically accurate approach to the big sticks. However Districts proved that sometimes it’s a case of quantity over quality, with seven behinds for the match giving them the buffer they needed to deny the Magpies a chance of pulling the margin back. Arthurina Moreen was clinical as ever inside 50 with three goals and her name in the Palmerston bests, and while fellow key forward Ebony Miller was not quite as prolific as usual with only two to her name, it was a real shared effort inside 50 from the Districts that got them over the line, with Tahlia Holtze and Brooke Hayne unstoppable across the field. Magpies’ Yasmen Roe and Natasha Medbury put in the hard yards but to no avail, with a full field effort from the Crocs just too good this time around.

NIGHTCLIFF 4.3 | 7.5 | 8.6 | 8.8 (56)
TRACY VILLAGE 0.1 | 1.3 | 3.4 | 3.4 (22)

GOALS

Nightcliff: M. Ward 3, E. Morrison 2, E. Wolsey 2, J. Anyon-Smith.
Tracy Village: N/A.

BEST

Nightcliff: E. Morrison, E. Wolsey, L. de Hommel
Tracy Village: N/A

Nightcliff will be chuffed with this solid win over Tracy Village, with an impressive four goal first quarter ultimately telling the tale of this match-up. While Tracy Village defied the odds and only conceded one goal from the Tigers in the second half, it was their slow start that really ruined any chance of coming back into the match that lost them this battle. Mikayla Ward was stellar for Nightcliff with three more goals added to her season tally, while fellow regular performers in Eliza Morrison and Emma-Lou Wolsey booted two of their own on their way to a joint ninth time listed in the bests. The likes of Lisa-Maree Toner and Zhoe Clarke put in solid performances respectively in the tough battle, maintaining their consistency and creating opportunities for the Razorbacks to head to goal.