WDNA has dealt the first blow in St Therese’s 17 and Under title campaign with an impressive 31-goal win in Round 6 of M-League juniors on Wednesday night. Though St Therese was missing a number of players from the match, WDNA was also without a few of its top contributors, giving both teams a chance to showcase players in different positions. In the end, it was WDNA that comfortably won each quarter to come away with the 53-22 victory.

WDNA burst out of the blocks to score 12 goals to six in the opening term, and by half-time, that scoreline had increased to 27-13. With no signs of slowing down, the winning side made a number of changes on the court, and it helped them dominate the third term. Piling on 15 goals to two, WDNA built an unassailable lead, before finishing off the game with a 11-7 final quarter.

Kane Wilson stepped into the side to play two critical quarters in second when his side took control, then scored five goals in the fourth term in goal attack. Dan King was influential in the defensive goal circle, while Campbell Brown scored 20 goals across three quarters in goal attack himself. Liam Mason top scored for St Therese with nine goals in the loss.

In the other match, Peninsula Waves notched up their first win of the season, overcoming Darebin by nine goals. In the pairing’s early season contest, Darebin took home the chocolates, but the inclusion of Carter Morrisey in the past fortnight has changed the Waves fortunes, and they were able to storm to victory in the second half. The teams were level at half-time, before Peninsula piled on 29 goals to 20 to run out 59-50 victors.

Morrisey finished the match with 45 goals, taking the bulk of the load in goal shooter, while Christian Doukas scored 12 goals in three quarters before going into goal defence in the final term. Jack Strickland (centre) was also impressive in centre for the winners. Darebin had a number of strong performers as well, including goal attack Ben Holehouse (19 goals) and his partner-in-crime Hudson Ebbage (30) who played three quarters in the loss.

17 & UNDER ROUND 6 RESULTS:

Peninsula Waves (59) defeated Darebin (50)
WDNA (53) defeated St Therese (22)

St Therese went outright top of the table in the 14 and Under division with a nail-biting two-goal win over WDNA. It was one of two thrillers in the competition, with Melbourne Up & Comers getting up over TBC by a single goal. In the WDNA-St Therese clash, It was a topsy turvy match all game, before a 13 goals to three third term put the former out to a 31-22 lead. Seemingly set to grab top spot, WDNA looked in control. That was until St Therese dug deep to produce a mammoth final term, scoring 15 goals to four and running over the top of WDNA.

River Zielinski was terrific in goal defence for WDNA, while Noah Bacon scored 17 goals in three quarters at goal attack. Karl Rebbington only played the two quarters in goal keeper, but kept his opponent to just five goals in that time. Brodie Lilly was enormous for St Therese in goal shooter, putting up 18 goals in the second and fourth quarters combined to finish with 21 for the match in three quarters. Seamus Sullivan and Jack Shaw in defence were named the losing side’s best.

The other match was just as nail-biting with both Melbourne Up & Comers and TBC level at half-time and three quarter time. In a low-scoring armwrestle, the former got the upper hand with a fourth goal to three in the last quarter, ensuring the side picked up the win. Kobi Verwoert was strong in goal defence throughout the match, while Connor Diplaris was a crucial key in the attacking midcourt. For TBC, Declan Crombi was named best-on for his role in goal defence, keeping his opponent to just seven goals for the entire match.

14 & UNDER ROUND 6 RESULTS:

Melbourne Up & Comers (20) defeated TBC (19)
St Therese (37) defeated WDNA (35)