MURRAY Bushrangers made finals last season and look set to be another team to watch in this year’s Talent League Girls competition. The Bushrangers have a nice depth of talent across the top-age and bottom-age contingent and should be tough to play against in 2026.

LAST SEASON

Played: 14
Wins: 8
Losses: 6

Murray Bushrangers had a breakout season last year with plenty of developing talents coming through the program. Winning more than half of their regular season games, the Bushrangers finished fifth on the ladder of the full-time teams and then beat Gippsland Power in the elimination final to reach the preliminaries. While ultimately getting well beaten by eventual premiers Eastern, the Bushrangers could be proud of such a big year.

FIXTURE

Round 2: vs. GWV Rebels | April 12 @ Queen Elizabeth Oval
Round 3: vs. Bendigo Pioneers | April 19 @ Deakin Reserve
Round 4: vs. Gold Coast Suns Academy | April 26 @ People First Stadium
Round 5: vs. GWS Giants Academy | May 3 @ Lavington Sports Ground
Round 6: vs. Western Jets | May 10 @ Avalon Airport Oval
Round 8: vs. Northern Territory | May 24 @ Highgate Recreation Reserve
Round 9: vs. Oakleigh Chargers | May 30 @ Wangaratta Showgrounds
Round 12: vs. GWV Rebels | June 20 @ Highgate Recreation Reserve
Round 13: vs. Bendigo Pioneers | June 27 @ Rumbalara Recreation Reserve
Round 15: vs. Dandenong Stingrays | July 11 @ Deakin Reserve
Round 16: vs. Calder Cannons | July 18 @ Highgate Recreation Reserve
Round 17: vs. Northern Knights | July 25 @ Kings Park (Seymour)
Round 18: vs. Tasmania Devils | August 2 @ Highgate Recreation Reserve
Round 21: vs. Calder Cannons | August 23 @ Wangaratta Showgrounds

Murray is used to travelling some serious miles around the country and 2026 will be no different, playing at a home of homegrounds in the region, as well as heading across the border to play the Giants Academy and up to Queensland to tackle the Suns Academy. The Bushrangers first play in a metropolitan region in Round 6, with four games at Highgate Recreation Reserve the most of any venue.

TOP-AGE PLAYERS TO WATCH

Quite a few of Murray’s most impressive players last season were bottom-agers, so the Bushrangers remain a strong haven of talent. Headlining the squad is strong marking tall forward Majella Day who is a handful for any defence. She competes well in the air and has speed off the mark to make opponents nervous, and would be among the leading goalkickers in this year’s Talent League competition. Expect her to start the season with the Giants Academy as she did last year.

Strong marking utility Rose Bell started the season on fire last year up forward then was thrown back once Day returned, and finished the year with 20 rebound 50s in the loss to Eastern. She knows how to find the ball and has a penetrating kick, while being a great natural footballer.

In addition to those two Allies-tied players, Skylah McPherson and Eliza Roche are a pair of left-footed forwards who can impact on the scoreboard. They showed plenty of development from the start of the year to the end, and will be names to keep an eye on alongside Day. Midfielder Carmela Perri is another player who came on in leaps and bounds last season and the Bushrangers have high hopes for her development in 2026, as is the case for Constance Dodd.

FUTURE NAMES TO REMEMBER

Murray has a pair of eye-catching bottom-agers to keep an eye on in the form of Evie Henley and Charlie Gibson. The duo impressed through the Under 16s carnival for the Giants last season and combined for 20 games in Murray colours as double bottom-agers. They can play a multitude of roles, but long-term are talented midfielders. Crystal Holdsworth was the other prominent 2009-born prospect to feature last year, running out for eight games.

SUMMARY

Murray Bushrangers boast some serious top-end talent as well as a couple of bottom-age stars heading into 2026. With some nice depth across the board, and a lot of the standouts from last season still there, the Bushrangers should be a surprise packet.