ROUND 9 of the Victorian Mens and Mixed Netball Association (VMMNA) M-League Juniors was completed on Wednesday night with mixed results. Darebin caused the major upset with a two-goal win over Wyndham in the Under 18 Boys, as the other results largely went as expected across the Under 18 Mixed and Under 15 Boys divisions.

UNDER 18 MIXED:

St Therese (45) defeated Darebin (30)

A dominant 16 goals to seven final term saw second placed St Therese pull away from Darebin to record a 45-30 win. St Therese only lead by a goal at quarter time, but applied the pressure with a 12 goals to six second term to lead by seven at the main break. The last placed Darebin refused to give in, outscoring the higher placed team in the third term with an eight goals to seven quarter. St Therese saved its best until last though, piling on 16 goals to seven and running out 45-30 winners.

There were plenty of outstanding performers for St Therese in the win, as Madeline Irino played in all three defensive roles and held down the fort with her versatility. Kye Vahland was crucial in goal keeper for three quarters, while Lucy Taylor took control in the midcourt, including three quarters in centre. Jamie Shannon was the standout shooter for Darebin, piling on 13 goals in two quarters as goal attack.

WDNA Red (55) defeated DDNA (44)

Top of the table WDNA guaranteed itself the minor premiership heading into the final round of the Under 18 Mixed competition, thanks to an 11-goal win over third placed DDNA. Though it was likely that WDNA would take the minor premiership anyway, it just means the final top two clash between WDNA and St Therese will not affect final ladder positions. In the 11-goal win, WDNA actually fell behind in the first term, trailing DDNA by two goals. A 19 goals to 12 second term changed that though, with WDNA leading by five goals at the main break. An even third term was followed by a 14 goals to eight last quarter resulting in the 55-44 scoreline.

Quinn Spencer impressed for the winners rotating through wing attack and goal attack – scoring seven goals in the latter during the third term – whilst Sophia Bloch played the first and third quarters in goal shooter, managing 11 goals. Leona Hristovska was a standout for the losers, playing a full match in goal attack for DDNA, and scoring 24 goals in the first three quarters.

UNDER 18 BOYS:

Darebin (38) defeated Wyndham (36)

Third placed Darebin has moved to level on the Under 18 Boys table with Wyndham, gaining an important confidence booster ahead of finals. Though the pair share second and third spot on points, with the competition reduced to three teams, the sides will face off in the first week of finals for the right to play the unbeaten WDNA Panthers. In their Round 9 clash, it was Darebin getting up by two goals, 38-36 in a thriller. They lead at every break, and even by seven at the last change, before Wyndham stormed home with a 12 goals to seven final term. It would not be enough as Darebin held on for the win, but it was a thrilling finish.

Joshua Fell was staunch in the Darebin defence for the first three quarters before moving into centre for the final stanza, and that is when Wyndham made its comeback. Also impressive in the match was Darebin’s Ryan Francis-D’Amour who was in centre for the first three quarters, whilst Soul Fuimaono impacted for the losers coming on in defence for the final three quarters of the match.

UNDER 15 BOYS:

WDNA Black (53) defeated Darebin (17)

WDNA Black has continued its dominant Under 15 Boys season with a 36-goal victory over Darebin in Round 9. The top of the table side at least doubled its opponents goals in each of the quarters, then finished off with a whopping 17-2 final term to run away 53-17 winners. Each quarter WDNA Black built into the game more and wore its opponents down, coming away with an eye-catching win.

Kane Wilson was phenomenal in goal keeper, keeping his opposing shooter to just seven goals for the match, whilst teaming up well with Oscar Clarke in the defensive goal circle for the winners. Darebin had its fair share of top performers on the night despite the lob-sided result, as Ava Moratta did well filling in for Darebin, and Christopher Petroyiannis was strong through goal defence.

Caulfield (35) defeated Kew (27)

Missing a few players for the Round 9 clash, second placed Caulfield took a little while to get into the grove, before finding its form and defeating Kew by eight goals. Trailing by five goals at the first break, Caulfield managed to get back on track in the second term to level the scores by half-time. That impressive momentum continued in the second half, scoring 21 goals to 13 in order to come away with the 35-27 win.

Nathaniel Takarua proved the key player with a switch from wing defence into goal shooter after quarter time, piling on 23 goals in the final term after the team only scored the four goals in the first term. Likewise Finn McLeod up the other end held the opposition goal attack to 11 goals in a steady performance. For Kew, John Allen scored 14 goals across the first three quarters in goal shooter.