IN JUST her second WAFL Women’s game, Peel Thunder double bottom-ager Evie Cowcher produced some jaw-dropping numbers as she bravely helped defend for Peel Thunder during an 18-point loss to reigning premiers Claremont. Undoubtedly the scoreline would have been more lob-sided without Cowcher there, as the 15-year-old was tasked with the kickouts, but also provided some other unbelievable highlights.

Peel Thunder, Western Australia GirlsTall Defender

Evie Cowcher

Height: 173cm

Weight: -

DOB: 03-08-2007

2023 WAFL Women’s: Round 2
Peel Thunder 1.1 (7) def. by Claremont 2.13 (25)

STATS: 29 disposals (25 kicks, 4 handballs), 8 marks (3 contested), 5 tackles, 13 rebound 50s, 76 per cent efficiency

FIRST QUARTER

Evie Cowcher got the first of her 29 touches via a kickout which saw her take a bounce and go long outside the defensive 50, an act that would be on repeat throughout the game. A minute later she took a huge leap to mark the ball at half-forward and kicked in front of teammate Jorja Haines before it tumbled out of bounds.

In the fourth minute, Cowcher took another huge grab back with the flight while looking into the sun, an incredibly difficult mark to pull off. She would have a good kick to the wing from that mark, and finish the quarter with another two kickouts, one of which went long to just outside the defensive 50, then another with a handball to a teammate over the top of an opposition forward.

SECOND QUARTER

Yet again, Cowcher was in the play early with a handball out of a contested situation just 30 seconds into the second quarter. Soon she was back to the skies as she competed in a marking contest, brought the ball to ground then laid a terrific follow-up tackle. At the six-minute mark, Cowcher had a deadly accurate pass close to the line which was weighted well to a teammate close to the line. That was followed up a minute later with a long handball to Ebony Dowson in the pocket.

Not long after, Cowcher took yet another intercept mark and though the kick looked to be a turnover, the Claremont player dropped the mark and Peel locked it up. She would continue to take the kick-ins, with a number of easy touches towards the end of the quarter, but all were generally quite long and effective. One went straight to Jasmin Stewart, but another was an elite kick to the back pocket where Kira Phillips marked under pressure but the kick was perfect.

THIRD QUARTER

As Claremont began to put the foot down, Cowcher saw even more of the ball in the second half. She competed against Emily Elkington from the very first Tigers clearance and inside 50, and while she could not quite gather cleanly, Cowcher went back for a second effort and kicked clear. Unfortunately that was turned over, but the defender covered ground quickly to get back to the goalline.

One major highlight came at the three-minute mark where Cowcher burst between two players reading the all perfectly and off a step passed to Haines on the wing. She continued to read the bounce of the ball and the play like a picture book, getting to the right spots and intercepting time and time again. Whether it was deep in defence, or high at half-back, Cowcher was in the right spots. The last few minutes of the quarter saw the 15-year-old apply a number of crucial defensive acts to lock the ball up on multiple occasions.

FOURTH QUARTER

Cowcher’s first touch in the opening five minutes saw the Peel Thunder defender receive a handball off her skipper but had to rush a kick out of bounds. Luckily being inside the arc it was not last touch, nor called deliberate. A minute later, Cowcher had a clean take to rebound from the defensive 50 into the middle, then took a ridiculous contested intercept mark in the goalsquare.

From the dominance in the air, to on the ground, she laid a tackle to force a flying shot to cannon into the post, then kicked long to the defensive 50 which was unfortunately turned over due to an unlucky bounce for her teammate, Krystal Carter. In the 13th minute, Cowcher clunked a contested mark playing further afield, crashing a pack in the process. Two minutes later, she was clean off the deck back at half-back, with a perfectly timed pass. She finished off the match with another mark on the goalline to save a certain goal.

CLOSING THOUGHTS ….

Evie Cowcher is a readymade defender with an array of weapons that make her a valuable player in the WAFL Women’s competition. Though only 15 and a few seasons away from being draft-eligible, the Peel Thunder youngster is a perfect example of the next crop of young stars coming through the ranks ready to make their mark at senior level.