SOUTH Australia toppled Vic Metro in the battle of the first round winners at the AFL Women’s Under 18 Championships at Werribee on the weekend. We took a look at the match and noted down some of the top performers from both sides.

VIC METRO:

#2 Alyssia Pisano (Eastern Ranges)
01/07/2005 | 162cm | Forward

Though not having many chances in the match, Pisano looked the most dangerous Metro forward as one would expect. She had an early chance with a snap that missed, but soon stayed in front of her opponent and marked off a quick kick inside 50. Delivering with the set shot, she got her side up and about, with her second goal coming just seconds into the third term. Though the game was ultimately done by that stage, she still worked hard, and really should have had a third goal in the dying seconds of the match but uncharacteristically skewed a shot wide and then could not connect in the goalsquare.

#6 Sophie McKay (Sandringham Dragons)
27/04/2006 | 168cm | Midfielder

Coming into the side as part of Vic Metro’s bottom-age rotations, McKay certainly held her own in the game. She is so clean by hand, and not only skilful, but tough as well, which makes her a well-balanced player across the board. She had a snap on goal that was looking to sail through, but teammate Georgia Brisbane made sure of it on the goalline. Overall, it was a promising display and she gained great experience often opposed to Goody.

#9 Hayley McLaughlin (Eastern Ranges)
22/11/2005 | 164cm | Wing/Midfield

Playing an uncompromising brand across the ground, McLaughlin worked hard and had a really promising first term. She used quick hands in close and spread hard to get the ball inside 50, and continued bobbing up throughout the game. She was not as efficient as she normally is, which was credit to the South Australian defensive pressure, but certainly gave it a red hot crack for four quarters.

#10 Isabel Bacon (Sandringham Dragons)
11/05/2005 | 172cm | Midfielder/Defender

With McKay added as an extra midfielder, her Sandringham Dragons teammate Bacon spent time in the defensive half of the ground, and was fierce at it all game. She pounced on the contested ball at ground level and got a number of clean handballs away, then looked to intercept via mark or handball receive and drive the ball outside of 50. At times her kicking can bit a little hit and miss, but she had a great moment using her body on Violet Patterson and then winning a free and delivering down the middle.

#13 Kiera Whiley (Western Jets)
07/04/2005 | 173cm | Midfielder

There were two parts to Whiley’s game in the midfield, the one with the slick hands out of congestion and the other clearing the ball as quickly as possible by foot. The former she did really well, able to fire off handballs setting up her teammates on the outside or releasing quickly giving them time and space. The latter was very much forced due to the pressure from the opposition, and the majority were aimed to get to open space or at least a breakeven contest. A dual-sided player, Whiley did swing onto her left at one point which adds a point of difference to her game.

#15 Laura Stone (Eastern Ranges)
22/11/2005 | 170cm | Defender/Midfielder

The standout Metro player on the day, Stone was sensational, collecting 24 disposals, three clearances, three inside 50s and two rebound 50s. Her burst speed out of the middle caught the eye, and her clearance at the start of the third term to set up Pisano’s second goal was also outstanding. She was often putting her body on the line and having to shuffle out handballs while being tackled, but it was hard to fault her efforts. Naturally her efficiency by foot was down around 40 per cent, but a lot of that was due to the defensive setups of the South Australian team.

#22 Ava Campbell (Eastern Ranges)
29/07/2005 | 174cm | Tall Defender

Similar to Whiley there were two sides to Campbell’s game. The intercepting side, and the execution side, with the former impressive, and the latter down on her usual output. The skipper was a four-quarter performer who saved a number of goal-scoring opportunities with her competitiveness in the air sensational, even if she did not mark it. Tasked with the kickouts in the first half, Campbell was one of Metro’s better players. Her execution did not go to plan with the South Australian forward press, but she was always willing to mop up and back up her teammates.

#29 Emily Gough (Sandringham Dragons)
01/12/2005 | 180cm | Key Defender

The key position player found herself in defence for this game and came away with the equal most touches in the match. Though her final stats of 24 disposals and five rebound 50s were padded up by taking the kickouts quite often, Gough held her own in marking contests and used her booming boot to clear the defensive area. She took a couple of contested marks as well, and while she is still a raw, developing talent, she was one of the surprise packets out of the game for her efforts.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA:

#1 Elaine Grigg (Central District)
23/12/2005 | 161cm | Midfielder/Forward

The tenacious midfielder popped up throughout teh game and played a consistent brand with regards to her attack on the football. Her tackling pressure was high, as was her work rate and second and third efforts, while her use by hand was also clean. She went at 50 per cent by foot, but also won a lot of her touches in congestion and was not afraid to put her body on the line.

#6 India Rasheed (Sturt)
29/11/2006 | 172cm | Forward/Midfielder

While Young booted five goals in the wing, Rasheed was the key architect, winning a game-high 27 disposals and using her damaging left boot to advantage. She spent more time in the midfield than against Western Australia for this game, but funnily enough managed to kick more goals with two majors. She worked up the ground at different points and was clean in the air and at ground level also taking five marks but winning 12 of her touches off the deck and ran at a 60 per cent contested rate.

#9 Shineah Goody (WWT Eagles)
08/11/2005 | 162cm | Midfielder

The reigning MVP started the game on fire with the opening clearance of the match and showed her class throughout the contest. Though she was a little quieter later in the game, she still picked up 17 disposals and had three clearances, winning a lot of her touches in close. The Vic Metro midfield was very wary of her and ensured she never had it easy, copping plenty of attention across the course of the game. Still, Goody found a way to influence.

#10 Jasmine Evans (Central District)
05/02/2006 | 165cm | Winger

The match-winning bottom-ager has some big moments in games and that was certainly the case in this contest with a huge second term. Winning the ball off the wing and going forward, Evans put it inside 50 on a number of occasions, then nailed a goal herself with a major bouncing home on the run midway through the quarter. Another highlight was a sizzling pinpoint pass to Young in the goalsquare to set up her teammates’ fifth goal.

#13 Piper Window (Glenelg)
30/07/2005 | 167cm | Forward/Midfielder

The South Australian skipper stepped up in the game and went to another level from her West Australian performance, bringing the attributes that made her a SANFLW Best and Fairest winner this year. She produced a strong four-quarter effort, was outstanding around the clearances, but even better in space clunking some big grabs. She took four marks – including a contested one against the much taller Krystal Russell – from 23 disposals, five clearances, eight inside 50s and a goal. Even her kicking ran at 56 per cent with her performance capped off by a clever goal in the final term kicking between opponents.

#14 Molly Brooksby (Norwood)
18/07/2005 | 172cm | Defender/Midfielder

Class personified again, Brooksby rotated between defence and midfield and put her elite kicking skills to use. She used both sides of her body again, and some of the passes she nailed down the centre corridor inside 50 were delightful. Brooksby might not be the contested ball-winner that some of her teammates are, but she can win her own ball, and her skills are superior to the majority, especially over long distances. Overall was promising again with five marks and four inside 50s to go with her 19 touches.

#18 Holly Ifould (South Adelaide)
02/09/2005 | 167cm | Wing

An impressive performance from the South Adelaide winger who used the ball well in transition and built on her MVP performance against the SANFLW Under 23 All-Stars. She worked hard between the arcs and chipped the ball around to teammates always looking to open up angles or run on for additional touches. Importantly, Ifould found space and ended up being an option to go to and assist in attacking plays.

#27 Brooke Boileau (South Adelaide)
28/01/2005 | 170cm | Midfielder

The improving draft bolter just keeps putting up strong performances, and Boileau again was consistent across the course of the game. Her efficiency was perhaps down on her best, but she was still influential around the stoppages and worked hard up and down the ground. A point of difference to most inside midfielders is her lateral movement and she sidestepped opponents on a couple of occasions. She did get run down at one stage when a bounce went astray doing so, but also set up scoring chances with long kicks forward.

#31 Lauren Young (West Adelaide)
16/09/2005 | 178cm | Key Forward

After splitting her time up both ends against Western Australia, Young was full-time up forward, teaming up alongside Bloods’ teammate Lucy Boyd. She was the match-winner kicking five goals, four of which came in the first half to ultimately close the door on Vic Metro early. The reason Young stands out as a prospect is the fact she can beat an opponent so many different ways. Early on she was marking on the lead so her opponent then stepped in front of her, only for Young to lean back and mark behind her one-on-one. She cycled through no less than four opponents, and realistically gave off three chances to teammates which would have been goals to her name. Queensland will have some headaches as to how to stop her in game three.

#32 Jemma Charity (WWT Eagles)
06/06/2006 | 170cm | Medium Defender

The skilful bottom-ager pieced together another promising national carnival game, using the ball exceptionally well out of the back 50 and taking the majority of kickouts. She roamed up the ground to provide some important drive, but also did well one-on-one, often against the talented Pisano. Charity finished with 14 disposals – at 85.7 per cent efficiency – as well as four marks and five rebound 50s.