EAST Coast Eagles made a statement in their AFL Sydney Women’s premiership push, dismantling Pennant Hills Demons in a one-sided contest that started in rain and ended in sunshine.

The match highlighted the gulf in development between the two sides at this stage of the season, with the Eagles coming away dominant 101-point winners over the wooden spoon-bound Demons, 15.17 (107) to 1.0 (6).

From the opening bounce, the Eagles generated a constant stream of linking play and running ball movement, driving the ball relentlessly into the Demons’ defensive half all day. Remarkably, East Coast was missing a large number of its best players on paper, yet its central core still created multiple opportunities right from the start.

A key tactical move saw usual defender Abbey Martin switched to full-forward, and she made the most of it, kicking five goals in the first half alone en route to six majors. Her tally for the day could have been even higher. New to the game, Hannah Griffin kicked a couple of goals herself and showed she’s more than ready to be where the action is.

Jessica Whelan was in and under all day, winning the inside ball, while Aysha Sanchez (three goals) and Bryany Parker (23 disposals, six clearances and eight inside 50s) burst out the front of contests repeatedly, creating forward 50 entries through their run and link play.

The standout, however, was Matilda Elbourne. She was everywhere, winning hard balls, distributing to outside runners, breaking lines, and reading the play superbly. She even chimed in with a goal.

In 2025, questions about the Eagles’ chances of making it “four in a row” largely centred on their depth. If Elbourne maintains this form, she will fill a vital role in their premiership push and help make East Coast very hard to beat. In the past, opposition teams knew that no matter where the ball went, the Eagles had players with the contested ball awareness to damage the contest and turn it their way.

For the Demons, Sheridan Baker was again a standout, and together with Bela Nash, battled tirelessly in defence. The backline has a huge workload, and at this stage of their offensive development, the Demons’ performances have stagnated, looking much the same week in and week out. Almost all the responsibility falls on Baker and Nash, and so far this season they have not been able to generate any consistent alternative pathways forward.

It was a small bright spot to see the Demons awarded a 50-metre penalty that resulted in a goal, and the brief elation of the young squad was great to witness.

Overall, it was a strong practice in offensive ball movement for the Eagles, who will be even more dangerous when some of their key players return. The key takeaway from the day was that the Eagles are right in the mix for the 2025 premiership, and the rest of the competition would do well to remember it.

PENNANT HILLS 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 (6)
EAST COAST 4.4 | 9.9 | 11.12 | 15.17 (107)

GOALS:
Pennant Hills: C. Gurney
East Coast: A. Martin 6, A. Sanchez 3, H. Griffin 2, M. Elbourne, M. Foscarini, M. Kozak, R. Tomkins

RMC BEST:
Pennant Hills: S. Baker, B. Nash, S. Este, A. Bennett, S. Sheridan
East Coast: M. Elbourne, A. Martin, B. Parker, A. Sanchez, J. Whelan

AROUND THE GROUNDS

The match of the round between Sydney University and UNSW-ES Bulldogs was cancelled due to the wet weather which left three one-sided results across the competition. While the Eagles’ opponent scored, the other two games resulted in scoreless losing teams. Premiership contender Manly Warringah Wolves defeated Parramatta Goannas by 129 points, while UTS Bats accounted for St George Dragons by 97.

In the Wolves’ shellacking of the Goannas, competition leading goalkicker Isabella Rudolph had a field day and was only really stopped from kicking a record haul by herself. Rudolph ended the game with a ridiculous 11.9 from 26 disposals and seven marks (two contested) to be a clear best on ground in the victory. Andrea Roditis and Kenya Fahey were huge around the stoppages, while youngster Lauren Bull also dominated inside 50 with 2.3 from 19 touches and seven marks (four contested).

Leading the way for UTS Bats was a stack of teenage stars with over-ager Ella Parker (23 disposals, four clearances and 5.4) having a day out, while Sophia Gaukrodger (36 disposals, five marks, eight clearances, seven tackles, six inside 50s and two goals) and Aoife Berry (24 touches, five clearances, 14 inside 50s and a goal) were great extractors at getting it forward. In the ruck, Madeleine Quinn had 30 hitouts from 21 disposals and six marks (four contested).