ROUND 3 of Northern Territory Football League (NTFL) Women’s saw Nightcliff keep their winning record intact with a come-from-behind victory while Southern Districts and Waratah played out the first draw of the season. Tracy Village had a bye this week, keeping them stuck at the bottom of the ladder while Pint flexed their muscles to claim an impressive 44-point win.

ST MARYS 2.3 | 3.3 | 4.3 | 5.3 (33)
DARWIN BUFFETTES 0.1 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 3.5 (23)

St Marys were on-song from the opening bounce, skipping out to a handy lead in the first term thanks to a two goal to zip start and never really looked back. Despite having a wealth of opportunities to hit the scoreboard inaccuracy plagued the Buffs who simply could not find their range while St Marys made it count where it hurt, on the scoreboard. In the end it was a case of too little, too late for the Buffettes who strung two goals together but could not overrun their opponents as St Marys brought home a 10-point victory.

There were no multiple goal kickers for either side, instead the scoring was scattered across a number of players with Claudia Whitfort once again popping up for St Marys and proving to be a menace in and around goals. Whitfort was also named amongst the best for her performance against the Buffettes while teammates Alana Coombes and Jasmine Anderson boasted a similar stat line with a goal and nod in the bests. Ashlea Melnikas returned to the goal kicking brigade this round to take her tally to four for the season while Madison Ludwig also found the big sticks. For the Buffettes, Martha De Santis showed what she is capable of snagging a goal while Zoe Anderson continued her hot form in front of goal with a major of her own. Bianca Stokes impressed in her first outing for the Buffs while Kiera Kurnoth settled into the line-up and earned a spot amongst the best.

SOUTHERN DISTRICTS 2.0 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 4.4 (28)
WARATAH 1.0 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.4 (28)

The first draw of the season took place on Saturday with Southern Districts and Waratah unable to be split at the final siren. After a sluggish first quarter, Waratah put the foot down in the second to steal the ascendancy heading into the main break thanks to three unanswered goals. However they plateaued in the second half unable to find a major and only registering one point  while the Crocs found their mojo in the final term to pile on two goals and secure a draw.

Michala Shaw made her presence felt in front of the goals nailing two majors in her first appearance of the season for the Crocs, while Tayla Thorn managed a goal of her own and was named amongst the bests. The only other goal scorer for Southern Districts was Kelsey Patterson. Ebony Miller was recognised for her four quarter performance for the Crocs as was Indianna Hickling and Makayla Siddons. The scoring was shared in the Waratah camp as Caitlin Couch, Monet Hunter, Danica Pedersen and Jenna Singh all slotted one with the latter making it three weeks straight she has hit the scoreboard.

PINT 1.2 | 6.8 | 7.8 | 9.10 (64)
PALMERSTON MAGPIES 1.3 | 1.4 | 2.6 | 2.8 (20)

A blistering second term from Pint all but gifted the home side the win, blowing the Magpies out of the water, piling on five goals to nothing. Down by a point at the first change Pint came out with a real pep in their step in the second and could have inflicted more scoreboard damage had they been more accurate slotting four behinds to accompany their five goals. The Magpies had their chances to strike but simply could not find the big sticks and suffered from inaccuracy much like Pint.

Jessie Baumer was a menace inside 50 for Pint kicking a bag of three while Gemma Cusack navigated the goals with ease in her first appearance for the season piling on two majors. Cara Evans and Jasmyn Hewett also popped up with two goals apiece in a collective effort for Pint with the latter also named amongst the bests for her performance. Cassie Henderson was influential for Pint as was Amy Chittick. For the Magpies their goals came from Arthurina Moreen and Tyra McKay as the duo slotted a major each while Iesha Ronberg was once again named in the bests for her efforts across the ground. Billie Byers and Shanoah Leedie also plied their trade in the losing side, working hard for every possession.

WANDERERS 0.3 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.4 (22)
NIGHTCLIFF 1.0 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 6.5 (40)

A dominant final quarter from Nightcliff saw the current table toppers come from behind and clinch a victory against Wanderers. Unable to generate their usual flow in the second and third terms, they ramped up the pressure in the last quarter to wrestle the game back onto their terms and stop the Wanderers from scoring. Nightcliff managed to add three goals to their half time tally as opposed to the Wanderers mere point, ultimately handing them the 18-point victory and keeping their undefeated record intact.

Although goals were hard to come by for some, that was not the case for Wanderers forward Kaitlyn Armstrong who slotted three majors to keep her side in the contest. She was the only real avenue to goal, making the most of her opportunities that came her way up forward. Armstrong was named amongst the best as was Morgan Johnston for the second consecutive week. Georgia Halkitis backed up her performance from last week while for Nightcliff a couple of familiar faces were once again at the forefront of the action with Lauren Gooden finding the big sticks twice. She was not the only one to kick a bag with in-form goal kicker Emma-Lou Wolsey slotting two with teammates Jacqueline Anyon-Smith and Gracie Reid also adding some scoreboard pressure. Hannah Turnbull earned a spot in the bests as did Laura de Hommel in what was a gritty performance by the ladder leaders.

Tracy Village bye

Picture: NT News