THE 2021/22 season of the Northern Territory Football League Women’s (NTFLW) Premier League is reaching the pointy end of the schedule. With finals just around the corner, the top-four is far from certain, which has delivered some hard-fought affairs over recent weeks. The theme continued into Round 16, where there were some big wins from some of the competition’s premier sides that are gearing up for a postseason appearance. The weekend saw a number of blowout victories across the grounds, while one match went down to the wire as one finals hopeful was able to cause a bit of an upset in a cracking contest.

Unfortunately, the Palmerston Magpies were forced to forfeit their clash against the Nightcliff Tigers on Saturday, giving the Tigers their 12th win of the season.

WARATAH 2.0 | 3.1 | 4.2 | 5.2 (32)
ST MARY’S 0.0 | 3.1 | 5.2 | 7.5 (47)

St Mary’s were able to keep their season alive by taking down fellow finals-hopeful Waratah at the Gardens Oval on Saturday afternoon. It was a highly anticipated matchup, given both sides are vying for an appearance in the postseason, and have enjoyed similar seasons. St Mary’s has been out of form lately, nearly dropping out of finals contention with their Round 15 loss to the Southern Districts. However, they were able to put their name back in the ring with a gutsy win this time around. They bounced back from yet another quiet start to the match to finish in style as they stormed home to a 15-point triumph, to put themselves just half a game outside of the top four.

The match opened in low-scoring fashion for the first few minutes, with both sides fighting tooth and nail for every possession. The scoring finally kicked off when pacey Waratah forward Jenna Singh broke free out the back of a pack and stormed down the wing. She sent the ball to the top of the goal square, where bounced into the arms of teammate Lauren O’Shea, who booted the first score of the match. Singh popped up again a few minutes later, gathering a bouncing kick inside-50 and snapping the ball around her body to kick an absolute pearler, and give Waratah a two-goal lead at the first break.

St Mary’s was able to get their offence rolling in the second quarter, finally hitting the scoreboard after not being able to do so in the first term. They booted their first goal of the game when a centring ball from Emma Stark bounced at right angles and managed to make its way over the goal line thanks to a bit of luck. Their second came shortly after, when Emily Forshaw stormed into an open goal to put her side within one point of their opponents. St Mary’s added another goal in quick fashion in the minutes that followed as they surprisingly took the lead from their opponents. However, Waratah were able to fight back with a major of their own, and proceedings were tied heading into the second half.

The third quarter opened with the two sides continuing to play out a hard-fought match, keeping fans around the ground entertained. Stark gave St Mary’s the lead back when she shrugged off a tackle inside-50 and booted the goal in impressive style. Waratah were able to answer shortly after with a major after receiving a 50-metre penalty. Continuing the back-and-forth style of play, St Mary’s once again hit the front when Stark booted her third for the match from a strong contested mark, with her side holding a six-point advantage over their opponents heading into the final term of play.

The opening minutes of the final term saw the ball essentially live between the 50-metre arcs, with neither side able to hit the scoreboard in immediate fashion. The Warriors were desperately fighting for the equalizing goal, but could not do so. To add insult to injury, St Mary’s were able to go down the other end and boot a six-pointer through Madison Harris, making things extremely tough for Waratah. Things got interesting again when the Warriors got within just seven points shortly after, but St Mary’s was able to nail the sealer a few minutes later and keep themselves in contention for a finals spot.

AROUND THE GROUNDS

Moving over to TIO Stadium for the next clash, the Southern Districts recorded a massive win over Tracy Village on Saturday afternoon. The Districts entered this clash heavily favoured, and were able to live up to these expectations, booting a match-winning score, thanks to a seven-goal haul from Keeley Waterbury.

The final match of the round saw the Darwin Buffaloes prepare for a finals appearance in style, taking down the Wanderers to the tune of 108 points at Tracy Village Oval on Sunday morning. Despite some shaky form throughout the year, the Buffaloes were clinical in their big win, and have built some serious momentum over the past few weeks.