NORTH Adelaide kick-started its premiership defence with a nail-biting two-point win over Norwood under lights at The Parade to open the 2023 South Australian National Football League (SANFL) Women’s season. The game had many ebbs and flows with North looking to kick away early and then again in the third term, but with each advance, Norwood took it right back to the Roosters.

A brilliant crumbing effort from Meghan Gaffney followed by a late pack mark and goal to Alana Lishmund drew the Redlegs within a point with five minutes to go, but the defence of North held up and the Roosters came away with the victory. The end result saw North Adelaide win 7.10 (52) to 7.8 (50) in one of the highest scoring aggregate games of SANFL Women’s football, while Norwood took the tag of producing the highest scoring losing effort.

NORWOOD 1.0 | 3.6 | 5.7 | 7.8 (50)
NORTH ADELAIDE 2.2 | 5.3 | 7.8 | 7.10 (52)

GOALS:

Norwood: M. Gaffney 2, J. Halfpenny, A. Lishmund, C. Morgan, C. Neale, R. Zerella
North: M. Breed 2, S. Jensen 2, B. Perry, I. Starmer, J. Tabb

RMC BEST:

Norwood: G. Jaques, M. Gaffney, T. Maher, J. Halfpenny, L. Schwerdt
North: K. Harvey, I. Starmer, K. Pope, M. Breed, J. Edwards

KEY MOMENTS:

Q1:

The opening centre bounce saw Rooster Brianna Arthur burst through the stoppage, kick long to defender-turned-forward Kristi Harvey who got the handball to Mattea Breed for a goal against her former side in the first 30 seconds.

A brilliant handball from Lana Schwerdt deep inside 50 while in congestion set up Courtney Neale for her first League goal, and getting Norwood on the board at the seven minute mark of the first term.

Q2:

Debutant Jayde Visser showed the traits as to why coach Krissie Steen picked her in teh League side, as the 2007-born Visser came off the wing from a centre bounce, received the handball, fended off Tahlita Buethke and nailed a kick forward to Isabelle Starmer who would find Brittany Perry for a goal to extend the margin out to a game-high 19 points

Costly late tackles inside the defensive 50 for North Adelaide made the defence look a tough rattled, with Rosette Zerella and Jade Halfpenny both converting opportunities within two minutes of each other to cut the deficit back to just four points late in the quarter.

Q3:

Redlegs youngster Coby Morgan showed off her wheels close to goal, when she won the ball 35m out then turned on a dime and exploded away, leaving her opponent for dust and making a certainty of the goal, cutting the deficit to just one point.

After a brilliant first term and relatively quiet second and third quarters, Breed popped up for her second major, in a right place, right time scenario to give the Roosters some breathing space heading into the last quarter.

Q4:

Co-captain Harvey going into defence when the Roosters needed it, and in particularly in the final term proved crucial, with the leader taking a number of key interceptions and settled down the back half, playing an important role alongside the likes of Jamie Parish and Ella Quinn who stood out.

Leading goalkicker Lishmund’s massive pack mark and goal with five minutes on the clock was crucial to the Redlegs keeping in the contest, and though it was ultimately not enough to get her side home, it was one of the highlights in what had been a relatively subdued night for the talented forward.

THE STAR: Kristi Harvey

The experienced veteran started forward and provided a presence inside 50, and though she did not hit the scoreboard herself, forced the Norwood defence to be aware of her, which opened up opportunities for others. She was rock solid all game, and was thrown back and forward like a yo-yo when required, eventually remaining in defence for the final term where she was able to take a number of strong grabs, and be the settling influence in the back half.

SURPRISE PACKET: Georgie Jaques

Matching up on one of the league’s best rucks in Starmer, the pair had a brilliant battle and showcased their respective traits. While Starmer is naturally good at covering ground at a ridiculous rate and finding the ball around the stoppage, Jaques held her own in that regard and was equally brilliant in her positioning around the stoppage. The NSW-ACT recruit is one to watch when it comes to mature-age tall options, because despite perhaps there being more athletic rucks, her ground level work below her knees was brilliant.

YOUNG GUN WATCH: Laela Ebert

There were three State Academy members in the match, and while Morgan’s goal was brilliant and fellow Rooster Visser had some unbelievable players, Ebert really caught the eye time and time again. Though outbodied at times, with ball-in-hand she was accurate, slick and able to hit targets under pressure without any problems. She provided some pinpoint passes and summed up situations effectively, in what was ultimately her debut game coming off an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury last season.