ROUND 1 of Northern Territory Football League (NTFL) Women’s League is done and dusted, with Big River Hawks debuting to much fanfare while Darwin Buffettes rocketed right up to the top of the ladder with a massive 117 point victory over Tracy Village.

ST MARY’S 5.2 | 6.2 | 8.8 | 11.11 (77)
BIG RIVER HAWKS 0.0 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 2.7 (19)

St Marys: A. Bailey 3, D. Ponter 2, S. Garner, M. Ludwig , B. Mcmurtrie, S. Edwards, C. Suapero, E. Calma
Big River Hawks: J. De La Coeur, K. Ross

BEST

St Mary’s:
Big River Hawks: J. De La Coeur, K. Ross, H. Ross, D. Peckham, T. Munn, C. Browne

St Mary’s got off to a flying start to open the 2019/2020 NTFL Women’s season, with a dominant display from the Saints who controlled every inch of the ground and didn’t let the big day for the Hawks take away from their desire to dominate the contest and get a big win on the board to start the season on a high. Young gun Danielle Ponter continued her fantastic form with two goals on the board, joined by 18-year-old Aaliyah Bailey with three goals and opening up plenty of space forward to share the load and provide plenty of forward pressure for the Hawks. For the Hawks, though they only put two goals on the board and had some issues across the ground there were plenty of high points with some solid defence seeing the Saints finding a lot of the behind posts. While the Hawks were similarly plagued with inaccuracy, it proves that the side has plenty to offer to the competition with Jayde De La Coeur and Kalieshia Ross putting a goal apiece on the board while Hayley Ross and Deanna Peckham also made an impact.

TRACY VILLAGE 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 (1)
DARWIN BUFFETTES 4.2 | 9.8 | 12.12 | 17.16 (118)

Tracy Village: N/A
Darwin: N/A

Tracy Village: B. McDougall, T. Angel, T. Everett, A. Biggs, E. Tuohy, G. Young
Darwin:

This was certainly not the way Tracy Village would have wanted to open their 2019/2020 campaign, with Darwin Buffettes well and truly dominating in every aspect of the match. Last season’s semi-finalists set up an astounding win to open the season, only conceding the one behind to leap right up to the top of the ladder and send a big message to the competition. For Tracy Village it was a disappointing start to the season, however they found some solid patches, with the likes of Bonnie McDougall, Taquila Angel and Tara Everett standing up when required. While the Buffettes may not have been as accurate as they would have liked, they will still be very happy with this result and the massive percentage it gives them in the season opener. The Razorbacks left much to be desired this week so will surely be raring to go next round to prove they have more in them than this performance.

SOUTHERN DISTRICTS 4.3 | 4.3 | 8.4 | 9.4 (58)
WARATAH 0.0 | 0.3 | 1.4 | 2.4 (16)

Southern Districts: E. Miller 3, K. Patterson 2, S. Hoogeveen-Hill 2, H. Engelhardt, L. Jeffrey.
Waratah: J. Singh, C. Fabris.

BEST

Southern Districts: L. Niven, E. Miller, M. Davis Tahere, C. Deegan, M. Breed, L. Jeffrey
Waratah: L. Roberts, A. Healy, M. Hunter, H. Goodall, J. Smyth

The reigning premiers were dealt a tough blow in Round 1, going down to their fellow grand finalists by a whopping 42 points. Districts certainly enjoyed their first win out of the blocks, dominating entries inside 50 and finding plenty of turnover ball with the ‘Tahs unable to hold onto possession. Despite some strong defensive work from Waratah getting the ball out of defence, far too much easy ball went straight back to their opposition with a strong blockading defence set up through the midfield allowing Districts to intercept mark and propel the footy forward. Despite the efforts of captain, Lisa Roberts, Waratah were unable to repeat their stellar 2018/2019 season form in the opening match, with Alysha Healy, Jenna Singh and Claudia Fabris also putting in the hard yards against their tough opposition. For Districts, Lori Niven dominated while the likes of Madisen Davis-Tahere caused plenty of issues across the ground. Ebony Miller (three goals), Kelsey Patterson and Samantha Hoogeveen-Hill (both two) all opened their accounts for the season proving that Southern Districts will be a force to be reckoned with this season thanks to goalkicking options alone.

PINT 3.1 | 4.1 | 4.3 | 5.4 (34)
PALMERSTON MAGPIES 3.1 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 5.6 (36)

Pint: J. Hewett 2, J. Baumer 2, C. Evans.
Palmerston: N/A

Pint: N/A
Palmerston: N/A

The closest match of the round saw the Magpies only just hold onto victory against Pint, who stayed on Palmerston’s tail for the whole game but were unable to steal the points. It was close from the very beginning, with both sides evenly matched and finding plenty of space to run and carry while at the same time unable to take control. The middle quarters were mostly slow with both sides having difficulty putting goals on the board despite the relatively high-scoring first term. Both sides applied phenomenal pressure, relentlessly denying easy ball after the opening quarter to cause issues up the field and forcing plenty of stoppages to create little scoring opportunity. Palmerston got the four points but Pint proved they will be a hard side to beat with plenty of options around the footy while Jasmyn Hewett and Jessie Baumer kicked two goals apiece.

NIGHTCLIFF 1.2 | 5.5 | 7.6 | 7.6 (48)
WANDERERS 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.4 (4)

Nightcliff: S. Miskin-Ripia 4, E. Morrison, C. Bracey, K. Morris
Wanderers: N/A

BEST

Nightcliff: E. Morrison, S. Miskin-Ripia, L. de Hommel, K. Morris, E. Wolsey
Wanderers: N/A

Nightcliff have started their 2019/2020 season with a bang, getting their first win on the board after only winning two games overall last season. While the match was relatively even to start, Nightcliff all but ran away with it in the second quarter piling five goals on the board and keeping the Wanderers scoreless at halftime. While the Wanderers found some better ball inside 50 in the second half, moving better to drive the ball forward, they were unlucky to not put a goal on the board with Nightcliff’s defensive effort just too strong. Star youngster Shantal Miskin-Ripia dominated for Nightcliff, with the key position player booting four goals while Eliza Morrison, Laura De Hommel and Emma-Lou Wolsey all played their role to contribute to the impressive victory. For the Wanderers, this match proves that the side has some potential but only if they can work together to deny ease of access forward and capitalise off stoppages to propel the footy towards their attack.