Sport
11 August, 2026
Superb second half leads Talbot past Dunolly
A pulsating second half allowed the Talbot Hawks to fly away with a 28-goal victory over their potential elimination final opponents Dunolly.
After Talbot entered quarter time with a distinct eight-goal lead, the Eagles threatened to recover and create a thrilling finish following an intense end to the first half.
A shutdown third term followed by a blistering fourth quarter from the Hawks not only doomed Dunolly’s comeback chances, but preserved their narrow percentage advantage over Lexton.
That tiebreaker could prove vital this weekend when Talbot takes on the fifth-placed Tigers on the final day of the home and away season, as a Hawks victory would leapfrog them into fifth and create a do-or-die final matchup with Trentham.
The Eagles will be excluded from any last-minute drama due to their round 18 bye, a timely chance to regroup and rectify key pitfalls from Saturday’s defeat that began with a suboptimal start.
Boosted by the welcome return of goal keeper Maddy Williams, the Hawks’ swarming defence forced several early turnovers from the hosts.
With Loren Aquilina and Tina Wardlaw providing some stellar entry passes, Talbot’s fresh attacking tandem of Elenoa Costello and Charli Kaye compounded Dunolly’s early deficit with their sniper-like accuracy under the net.
Outside of Dunolly player-coach Lara Clements providing some resistance with her limited scoring chances, the Hawks looked destined for a comfortable victory as they led by eight goals at quarter time.
The Eagles immediately challenged that notion when they returned from the opening interval regrouped and distinctly sharpened.
The midcourt triumvirate of Charlotte Liddicoat, Mel Schodde and Ruby Lang were instrumental to Dunolly’s improvement, preserving possession that relieved the hosts’ reliance on defenders Demcy Fraser and Ashlee Lierich and finding avenues into the attacking third.
Following her first quarter cameo, Leah Davis took the goal attack bib from Hannah Kenny and did a commendable job supporting Clements, who was the catalyst for a 17-goal second term for the Eagles.
With their deficit was cut to seven goals at half time, Dunolly was determined to cement themselves as a dark horse finals contender against last season’s runner-up.
However, their surging attacking momentum that ended the first half suddenly vanished at the worst possible time.
With teenager Naomi Henderson replacing Portia Hughes at wing defence and flanked by Jane Dikini and Williams, Talbot’s defensive third had a noticeable height advantage on Dunolly’s attackers, something they took full advantage of as they routinely picked off passes.
Lierich and Fraser fought valiantly to keep the Eagles within touching distance, and even Clements shifted into goal defence midway through the third term to lend a helping hand, but the damage had already been done by the Hawks, who led by 16 goals at three-quarter time.
Costello and Kaye put the icing on the cake of Talbot’s sweet victory with an outstanding 24-goal fourth quarter which swelled the final scoreline to 73-45.
Costello moved into second behind Avoca premiership player-coach Maddy Egan on the A grade goal-scoring table after equalling her season-high of 59 goals on Saturday. Promising teenager Kaye also had a standout performance, netting 14 of her 18 attempts at goal.
Clements was the focal point of Dunolly’s attack with 37 goals while Kenny provided six goals and Davis added two.