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Sport

14 September, 2023

The Coaches' Say — Avoca V Carisbrook

There’s one word on the mind of Carisbrook and Avoca on Saturday — retribution. For Carisbrook, it’s a chance to end a 24-year premiership drought, coming up against the team that denied them in 2019 in Avoca. And for Avoca, it’s an...

By Michael Thompson

Avoca's Stacey Blair and Carisbrook's Laura Hurse. Photo: 150923 24
Avoca's Stacey Blair and Carisbrook's Laura Hurse. Photo: 150923 24

There’s one word on the mind of Carisbrook and Avoca on Saturday — retribution.

For Carisbrook, it’s a chance to end a 24-year premiership drought, coming up against the team that denied them in 2019 in Avoca.

And for Avoca, it’s an opportunity to get back on top after falling in the preliminary final last season.

In the netball season this year, there have been three teams that have been the class of the field, incredibly, losing just two games between them, that being Carisbrook, Avoca and Natte Bealiba.

Of course, however, three does not fit into two, and the Redbacks and Bulldogs have been successful in navigating the challengers this season to get into this position, particularly given the influence of the reigning premiers in the Swans.

Avoca coach Kerry Egan is grateful that she’ll be able to coach three grand finals with daughter Maddy, as they look to win the A, B and C grade deciders.

“It would be fantastic to win all three. The last five years coming to fruition in our time coaching would be great — we’ve won one at least every year since we’ve been coaching, while in 2021, all three grades were minor premiers, so we’d love to be rewarded with trophies this time,” she said.

Egan confirmed no injury troubles for the Bulldogs on Saturday — but if there was, there would be someone ready to step up, which is consistent with their theme of being treated equally on the court during training sessions.

“All the girls are qualified for all grades, so we won’t have too many troubles to worry about hopefully. We also don’t have any injuries. If we get injuries, we have full benches for all grades, which is good,” she said.

It came after the A graders put in an extraordinary second half performance to turn a three-goal lead into a 26-goal victory against Lexton in last week’s preliminary final, which showed just how much the Bulldogs can turn a game on its head when they perform at their best.

“Everyone put in a powerful performance last week, and we’re hoping it stays that way this week. We’ve been working towards that the last few weeks,” Egan said.

Winning on Saturday would be the perfect tonic after their end to 2022, given their exit in the preliminary final to Natte Bealiba.

“It would be a relief. We didn’t have so much to prove as such, but it was devastating to have our one loss at the second-last hurdle last year after going undefeated for a couple of years before that, so it was disappointing in a sense. We would love to hold that trophy aloft again,” Egan said.

Carisbrook mentor Emma Rumpff is desperate to see the Redbacks claim their first A grade premiership this century, having waited since 1999 for their last success.

“It’s exciting. We are lucky enough that Sherriden Byrne and Lauren Jones can talk about the last time we won an A grade premiership, having played in it. They’re looking for that win, just like the rest of us,” she said.

Like many around Carisbrook, Rumpff sees multiple Redbacks outfits in the grand finals as a badge of honour.

“It’s been a massive team effort by all the clubs to get as far as they have, it’s absolutely amazing,” she said.

Rumpff anticipates the game will be similar to their round seven clash — a high-scoring, entertaining draw.

“If we wanted to come up against anyone, it’d be Avoca. They’re the pick of the bunch, and it’s going to be a great showdown, which is exactly how it should be,” she said.

“It was goal-for-goal and a very tight game last time, and I’m expecting Saturday to be a repeat of that. I think it’ll come down to who is better on the day. The matchups around the court are brilliant. That’s how it should be.”

Rumpff confirmed no changes to her lineup.

“Everyone is fighting fit at the moment, which is great compared to our preliminary final last season,” she said.

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