IT was far tighter in the end than the opening 10 minutes of the match might have suggested, but Valley Wolves managed to come away with the points in the Victorian Men’s & Mixed Netball Association (VMMNA) on Wednesday night. Facing off against Ariels in the Mixed Premier Division, and the M-League contest turned into a beauty, with Valley Wolves escaping by the skin of their teeth in a 51-48 result.

There are fast starts, and then there is an 8-0 lead in the first six minutes. Valley Wolves had just that, piling on the pressure early to roar to a dominant position, and almost went 9-0 up had it not been for a rare turnover. Instead, a crucial intercept by Dan Stone had the Ariels transition from defence to offence, and then score then first goal with 8:35 left on the clock in the opening term.

Stone would finish the game with an outstanding, yet ultimately from a team perspective, unrewarded performance, but it did not stop him giving 100 per cent throughout the contest. Time and time again he read the ball well into the Wolves circle, and for the most part the game was fairly even through the last four quarters. That early lead would be something the Wolves would rue, particularly when shooter Monique Nagle was hampered by injury and had to come off.

She would return to the court six minutes into the second term and try and reduce her movements by going into goal shooter. It was one of many changes rolled out by Nagle and her Wolves, as James Story – who had slammed home all of his side’s 16 goals in the first quarter – also came off. The new-look shooting circle until Nagle returned featured Alastair Punshon – who had previously been goal defence – and Maddie Johny who switched in from wing attack.

The injury to Nagle hurt the Wolves, which coincided with the Ariels coming back into the contest. Both Stone and Ryan Towers were doing well to intercept, and with a score in the final 30 seconds, Ariels had cut the quarter time lead back to 13-16.

The second quarter was fairly even early, with the changes seemingly cancellig each other out. The Ariels shooting circle had been functioning well in the first term when presented with opportunities, though the switch of Sam MacKerras back there from the Wolves’ centre bib seemed to be the most beneficial for the leaders.

Instead Kurt Thompson lifted his output, shooting seven goal in the second term after only four in the first quarter. Up the other end, Stone was combining well with Kristy Clarke who came on in the term for the Ariels, while Brendan Nick‘s inclusion at centre provided some extra pressure on the Wolves’ midcourt. When it was all said and done, despite the lead going out to seven, the half-time deficit stood at six, 23-29.

Back-to-back turnovers greeted both sides, with Lorna Clark – the third straight change at centre for the Ariels – taking a tumble in the early moments. The Ariels defence – lead by Stone and now Ella Spencer who had slotted in at goal keeper – was benefiting off the extra moment in the circle that clearly hampered Nagle at goal shooter, and the transition play midway through the term helped cut the deficit to four goals with eight and a half minutes remaining.

In the end, Nagle opted to take herself off and handed the goal attack bib to Zanna Woods, with Punshon moved into goal shooter. The new-look combination seemed to work as they went back out to an eight-goal lead, 38-31. The Ariels were not going to go away easier though, as they kept coming back within four, but Punshon and Woods combined for 12 goals in the term to maintain a 41-35 lead at three quarter time.

The final break yielded yet more changes for both sides, with Story returning to the court in goal shooter, whilst Nick and Clarke both came back on for Ariels in centre and wing defence respectively. The Wolves’ handy buffer looked to be enough throughout, and teams were both shooting as well as each other. Mixing up their midcourt, the Wolves called upon a change at centre midway through the term to keep the energy high.

Ariels were far from done though, as they kept fighting, grabbing a crucial turnover and then Thompson shooting back-to-back goals to cut the deficit to four, 44-48 with 3:14 on the clock. Story was just as reliable up the other end, though an outstanding intercept from Stone with two minutes remaining saw the Ariels whittle down the margin further. With 90 seconds on the clock, the deficit was a manageable two goals.

Both sides were able to nail goals on their centre passes to keep it at the margin, and as it ticked into the final minute, the Wolves looked to just maintain possession. A desperate attempt from Ally Black to intercept in midcourt almost had the Ariels back with the ball, but was deemed out of court, and then the Wolves managed to hold onto possession for the last 20 seconds to win the game, and Woods putting up one last goal for a 51-48 victory.

Despite only playing two quarters, Story shot 25 goals for the Wolves in the win, with Johny’s versatility throughout the mid and shooting circles impressive. Woods and MacKerras also stepped up when required in the win. For the Ariels, Stone was clearly best on for his intercepting ability in the defensive third, whilst Spencer, Nick and of course Thompson – who scored 18 goals in the second half – were also strong factors in the Ariels’ comeback.

The Wolves-Ariels match ended up being the only tight contest of a one-sided Round 4. Both Parkville Panthers and Geelong Cougars produced dominant wins to blow away their respective opponents. In what was touted as an all-undefeated clash, the Panthers piled on a massive 75 goals to Melbourne Quakes’ 45, leading by 31 at the final break before the Quakes won the last term.

Brodie Roberts scored 28 goals in the first half, before coming on in the final term as wing attack, teaming up well with Ellen Doyle who shot 34 goals throughout the entire match. Playing his second match of the night, Connor Lilly came on at goal attack in the second half after his successful Men’s Premier Division win with St Therese, to shoot 13 goals in the Panthers’ win.

His St Therese and Panthers’ teammate Riley Richardson also impressed in his two quarters through centre, whilst Carly Harrison was outstanding feeding the shooters in the midcourt. For the Quakes, Danny Loats piled on 37 goals for his side, whilst Josh Wells stepped up from Division 1 to play goal keeper in the final term, replacing David Chisholm who had battled hard for three quarters.

Meanwhile the Cougars did as many expected them to against NNE Vipers, storming to a 38-goal win to maintain top spot on the M-League Mixed Premier Division ladder. Again lead superbly by Mel Bragg in centre for the first half, the Cougars stormed to a 30-17 advantage by the main break. They continue to tighten the screws with 36-15 in the second half for an overall win of 66-28. Jake Noonan teamed well with Bragg at wing attack, while Sarah Szczykulski impressed in the defensive goal circle. For the Vipers, they only had the seven players throughout the game, with Lily Davis being a late fill-in at wing attack, whilst Bridget Ryan (15 goals) and Michael Dower (13) held up the attack.

MIXED PREMIER DIVISION ROUND 4 RESULTS:

Valley Wolves (51) defeated Ariels (48)
Parkville Panthers (75) defeated Melbourne Quakes (45)
Geelong Cougars (66) defeated NNE Vipers (28)