MILESTONES
Congratulations to Maddy Dodd who played her 50th game of football on Saturday!
Maddy is the first to achieve this milestone and is a reflection of Maddy’s commitment to the game & wider club! We are grateful to have you as a part of our club Maddy!

FOOTBALL
Seniors
Monbulk would have a tough weekend as they came up against Narre Warren, who are on top of the ladder in all grades for both football and netball, except for the Reserves, where they are second. The women’s footballers faced Healesville, who are also on top.

The day was cool and overcast but close to ideal as far as playing conditions were concerned, with the strong wind on Friday having dried out the ground. Monbulk applied a strong pressure game on their more fancied rivals, and for most of the day this resulted in the match being very evenly poised. The only thing that separated the two sides was effective use of the ball when it entered the forward fifty. The Hawks can take plenty out of this match as they head to Wandin next Saturday.

Monbulk 7.9.51 def by Narre Warren 13.10.88
Best: Glenn Strachan, Lachlan Sheppard, Thomas Taylor, Lochlan Beecroft, Bailey Rutherford, Ben Smith
Goals: Glenn Strachan 2, Ziggy Hatherley 2, Brodie Emmett 1, Harry Fleming 1, William Mutschler 1

Reserves
The Narre Warren seconds are a well drilled team with good outside runners who are able to create chains of possessions towards goal. Around the packs and in the contested balls Monbulk more than held their own and it was just a lack of polish that resulted in the margin being greater than it should have been.

Monbulk 4.7.31 def by Narre Warren 12.14.86
Best: Clayton Spooner, Lewis Oliver, Matthew James, Beau James, Benjamin Magnay, Shane Williams
Goals: Shane Williams 2, Clayton Spooner 1, Michael Langworthy 1

Under 19s
The Monbulk Under 19s were again undermanned, having 16 players compared to Narre Warren’s 23 and the match was played at 16 a side, with Narre having seven on the bench. In the first quarter the Magpies looked to take the ascendency with three goals to nil in what looked like it could turn into a blowout. After quarter time the Hawks dug deep, attacked the contests hard and controlled the tempo when they could. It was a gutsy performance by the players who showed pride in their team and their guernsey. For the last three quarters it was an even match with both sides scoring a goal each.

Monbulk 1.3.9 def by Narre Warren 4.10.34
Best: Nick Taylor, Coby Passingham, William Henderson, Tait Colee, Nicholas Heron, Casper Griffiths
Goal: Noah Rutherford 1

Women’s
Monbulk celebrated Maddy Dodd becoming the first player to reach 50 games with the senior club since an Under 18s team was formed in 2018, which became the nucleus of the senior team formed in 2019. Monbulk met Healesville for the second time in three weeksand although they again faced a hefty deficit on the scoreboard, the endeavour and enthusiasm was consistent throughout.

Monbulk 0.0.0 def by Healesville 11.16.82
Best: Genna Seamer, Maddison Dodd, Josie Ford, Indy Bakker, Kathryn Gow, Matilda McDermott

NETBALL
A Grade
The A Grade match was played under lights as dark clouds rolled though in the mid afternoon. The Magpies are a class combination and although Monbulk played a solid game, they were never able to gain the upper hand at any stage. Narre won each quarter by just a few goals but that was enough to see them home comfortably by 15 when the match ended.

Monbulk 33 def by Narre Warren 48
Best: Sophie Stubbs, Nicole Macdowell, Jamie Clark
Goals: Nicole Macdowell 18, Sophie Stubbs 8, Jen Dewhurst 7

B Grade
Monbulk’s defensive players put in a very creditable game and caused numerous turnovers, but, coming up against a well oiled machine, the weight of forward entries by Narre Warren overwhelmed their efforts and the Magpies had a decisive victory in the end.

Monbulk 38 def by Narre Warren 61
Best: Rihanna Kelly, Lisa Boyle, Siobhan Munday
Goals: Paige Rondinella 38, Chloe Schmidtke 5, Dayna Walsham 5

C Grade
On paper the C Grade game looked to be a mismatch as Narre Warren were 7 games ahead of the Hawks on the ladder. The game was far more evenly matched than expected. The Hawks played a tenacious game for the first three quarters and were only trailing by 11 at the final change. The Magpies finally broke the shackles in the last term, shooting 13-5, which made the final margin greater than it should have been. C grades goal for the day was to remain positive and lift each other up despite the scores which was well and truely achieved, as well as putting on one of their strongest games of the year!

Monbulk 26 def by Narre Warren 45
Best: Courtney Witt, Jessica Whitworth, Sammi Kelly
Goals: Jamie Sands 19, Sammi Kelly 7

D Grade
Narre Warren’s D Grade team wouldn’t look out of place playing C Grade and were too experienced and well drilled for the young Hawks side. Monbulk ran out the game but were just outclassed.

Monbulk 12 def by Narre Warren 61
Best: Kate Smith, Caitlin Utting, Eireann Lawson
Goals: Eireann Lawson 1, Kate Smith 9, Rachael Jennings 2

Reminder next weekend is our Casino Night! Check out of Facebook event for more details, everyone in the community is welcome!