{"id":126578,"date":"2023-03-21T14:40:04","date_gmt":"2023-03-21T04:40:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/?p=126578"},"modified":"2023-03-21T14:40:07","modified_gmt":"2023-03-21T04:40:07","slug":"wafl-womens-player-focus-evie-cowcher-peel-thunder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/2023\/03\/21\/wafl-womens-player-focus-evie-cowcher-peel-thunder\/","title":{"rendered":"WAFL Women’s Player Focus: Evie Cowcher (Peel Thunder)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

IN JUST her second WAFL Women’s game, Peel Thunder double bottom-ager Evie Cowcher<\/a> produced some jaw-dropping numbers as she bravely helped defend for Peel Thunder during an 18-point loss to reigning premiers Claremont. Undoubtedly the scoreline would have been more lob-sided without Cowcher there, as the 15-year-old was tasked with the kickouts, but also provided some other unbelievable highlights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"PeelPeel Thunder<\/a>, \"WesternWestern Australia Girls<\/a>Tall Defender<\/span><\/div>

Evie Cowcher<\/h4>

Height: <\/span>175cm<\/p>

Weight: <\/span> - <\/p>

DOB: <\/span>03-08-2007<\/p><\/div><\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>

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2023 WAFL Women’s: Round 2
Peel Thunder 1.1 (7) def. by Claremont 2.13 (25)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

STATS: <\/strong>29 disposals (25 kicks, 4 handballs), 8 marks (3 contested), 5 tackles, 13 rebound 50s, 76 per cent efficiency<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FIRST QUARTER<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evie Cowcher got the first of her 29 touches via a kickout which saw her take a bounce and go long outside the defensive 50, an act that would be on repeat throughout the game. A minute later she took a huge leap to mark the ball at half-forward and kicked in front of teammate Jorja Haines<\/a> before it tumbled out of bounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the fourth minute, Cowcher took another huge grab back with the flight while looking into the sun, an incredibly difficult mark to pull off. She would have a good kick to the wing from that mark, and finish the quarter with another two kickouts, one of which went long to just outside the defensive 50, then another with a handball to a teammate over the top of an opposition forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SECOND QUARTER<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet again, Cowcher was in the play early with a handball out of a contested situation just 30 seconds into the second quarter. Soon she was back to the skies as she competed in a marking contest, brought the ball to ground then laid a terrific follow-up tackle. At the six-minute mark, Cowcher had a deadly accurate pass close to the line which was weighted well to a teammate close to the line. That was followed up a minute later with a long handball to Ebony Dowson<\/a> in the pocket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not long after, Cowcher took yet another intercept mark and though the kick looked to be a turnover, the Claremont player dropped the mark and Peel locked it up. She would continue to take the kick-ins, with a number of easy touches towards the end of the quarter, but all were generally quite long and effective. One went straight to Jasmin Stewart<\/strong>, but another was an elite kick to the back pocket where Kira Phillips<\/a> marked under pressure but the kick was perfect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THIRD QUARTER<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Claremont began to put the foot down, Cowcher saw even more of the ball in the second half. She competed against Emily Elkington<\/strong> from the very first Tigers clearance and inside 50, and while she could not quite gather cleanly, Cowcher went back for a second effort and kicked clear. Unfortunately that was turned over, but the defender covered ground quickly to get back to the goalline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One major highlight came at the three-minute mark where Cowcher burst between two players reading the all perfectly and off a step passed to Haines on the wing. She continued to read the bounce of the ball and the play like a picture book, getting to the right spots and intercepting time and time again. Whether it was deep in defence, or high at half-back, Cowcher was in the right spots. The last few minutes of the quarter saw the 15-year-old apply a number of crucial defensive acts to lock the ball up on multiple occasions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FOURTH QUARTER<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cowcher’s first touch in the opening five minutes saw the Peel Thunder defender receive a handball off her skipper but had to rush a kick out of bounds. Luckily being inside the arc it was not last touch, nor called deliberate. A minute later, Cowcher had a clean take to rebound from the defensive 50 into the middle, then took a ridiculous contested intercept mark in the goalsquare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the dominance in the air, to on the ground, she laid a tackle to force a flying shot to cannon into the post, then kicked long to the defensive 50 which was unfortunately turned over due to an unlucky bounce for her teammate, Krystal Carter<\/a>. In the 13th minute, Cowcher clunked a contested mark playing further afield, crashing a pack in the process. Two minutes later, she was clean off the deck back at half-back, with a perfectly timed pass. She finished off the match with another mark on the goalline to save a certain goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CLOSING THOUGHTS ….<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evie Cowcher is a readymade defender with an array of weapons that make her a valuable player in the WAFL Women’s competition. Though only 15 and a few seasons away from being draft-eligible, the Peel Thunder youngster is a perfect example of the next crop of young stars coming through the ranks ready to make their mark at senior level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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