Railways and Royals a step above the rest

By Michael Roberts | posted on February 22, 2021

RAILWAYS made a strong case for premiership favouritism on the weekend with an impressive 29-point win over Denmark-Walpole under lights at Collingwood Park.

Leading from beginning to end the Tigers secured their fourth win on the trot as they continued their perfect start to the 2021 GSFLW campaign.

Dominating around the ball, the likes of Ella Scamozzi, Mereana Wynne and Ellie White were too good for a Denmark side who struggled in the clearance battle.

Off to a flyer in the first term, Railways led 3.1(19) to 1.0(6) at quarter time in a highly entertaining opening stanza.

The Tigers defence held Denmark goalless in the second quarter, extending their lead to 21 points at the main break.

Denmark only managed a single major after half time as Railways cruised to a 6.6 (42) to 2.1 (13) victory, and in doing so sent a sent a strong message to the rest of the competition.

Britney Bolton finished with three majors for the Tigers, while Ashleigh Needs and Ashley Juers chipped in with a single goal each for Denmark.

In the earlier of two Friday night fixtures at Collingwood Park, Royals came from behind to pull off a 19-point win over a plucky North Albany side.

The Kangaroos kept Royals scoreless in the first term to lead by seven points at the first change but couldn’t manage a single score beyond that.

Royals dominated the inside 50s after quarter time, with Gracie Gibson making the most of her chances in attack

The talented forward nailed an important set shot in the second term to arrest back some momentum for Royals before snagging two brilliant opportunistic goals off the deck in the final quarter to put the contest beyond doubt.

If Railways are the premiership favourites, then Royals aren’t far behind.

The two sides next meet in round 7.

Over at Sounness Park, Mount Barker kept their finals chances well and truly alive with a crushing 28-point win over Albany Sharks.

Securing their first victory of the season the Bulls jumped from last place to fourth on the ladder.

Buoyed on by a strong home crowd, Barker were ruthless in the contested ball as they outmuscled Sharks from start to finish, running out 4.7(31) to 0.3(3) victors.

Ivy Parson was best-on-field for the Bulls, while young gun Marlee Ashton showed a lot of promise through the midfield for Sharks.

In the third season of the GSFL women’s comp, the standard of football continues to improve at a remarkable rate, and the twilight fixturing has once again shown to be a hit with fans.

The number of players coming off injured is cause for concern, but you hope that will also improve as players become more accustomed to the 360-degree game.