Two Cats teams avoid elimination

Despite a victory over the same side a week earlier, the young Finley team found themselves underprepared for this crucial match.

Nathalia came out strong, taking an early lead of six goals in the first term.

While the young Cats managed to steady their performance and chip away at the lead each quarter, they were unable to fully regain control of the game.

Despite the disappointing loss, the girls can be proud of an incredible season and hold their heads high as they reflect on their efforts.

C-grade: Finley 39 def Moama 36.

Thanks to some finals nerves, the girls got off to a slow start against Moama.

Down by two goals at quarter time, they then started to gain some momentum in the second and evenly matched it with Moama to still be down by two goals at half-time.

In a solid team effort for the third quarter, with the use of rolling subs, the girls came out firing and took hold of the game.

Relentless defensive pressure and the fact that they could capitalise on some of Moama’s mistakes in the last quarter meant they could hold on to win the game by three goals!

Everyone knew their roles on the court and played them well.

C-Reserve: Finley 58 def Mulwala 38.

The team came out strong with the intention of getting a lead from the start. We didn’t want to have to chase a competitive Mulwala side.

We did that with great composure closing the first quarter seven goals up.

The second quarter saw the team extend its lead with strong rebounds, then converting them into goals in attack.

A dominant 15-goal lead was very pleasing for all at half-time.

We continued to extend the lead in the third quarter with great drives through the midcourt, and rolling subs of young legs helped us continue to force pressure, resulting in turnovers.

In the last quarter more of Peta’s babies played their roles on the court.

We held out Mulwala as they continued to fight to the final whistle. The Cats finished the game with a strong 20-goal win.

Under-17s: Finley 26 def by Deni Rams 39.

Finals means a whole new ball game, but we knew what we had to implement across the court in defence and attack.

We had a tough first quarter with difficulty moving and finishing our work off.

We tried our best to keep the season alive, staying within a few goals most of the game.

A firing Deni side saw us go down and, unfortunately, finish our 2024 season.

Despite the result, the girls had an unbelievable year with commitment and dedication week in and week out, all while having a laugh together.

We were so lucky to have Essential Hair & Beauty sponsor our two awards this week, which went to Charlotte Fleming and Katya Eddy.