William Buck Premier Women’s kicks-off as Coburg falls short in debut

Annie Ireland

Round 1 of the 2023 William Buck Premier Women’s kicked off over the weekend, providing some entertaining games and the introduction of Coburg into the VAFA.

St Kevin’s kicked off their premiership defence and quest for a three-peat in style on Friday night, with a 35-point win over Caulfield Grammarians. However, had their kicking been more accurate, they probably would’ve piled on an even bigger lead.

The game was close at half time, with Caulfield kicking 2.1-13 to St Kevin’s 2.9-21. However, St Kevin’s turned the jets on in the second half, keeping Caulfield scoreless in the third quarter and only allowing them to kick two goals for the rest of the game.

Bree Doyle started off her season as captain to be one of St Kevins’ best, following on from an impressive season last year, whilst Catherine Stanton and Sarah Betts both kicked two goals.

For Caulfield, Cheree Peters was best on and Tarryn Hurst kicked two goals.

Caulfield will come up against Kew next weekend in what should be an entertaining battle between two of 2022’s best sides, whilst St Kevin’s will take on Melbourne University and unveil their premiership flag at home.

It was a dominant showing for Collegians as they played their first William Buck Premier game, having moved up from Premier B last year. The Purple Army kept Old Xavs scoreless after half time, limiting them to only two goals for the game, whilst they piled on six unanswered goals.

Maggie Gaffney and Ruby Vandenboom kicked a goal each for Xavs, whilst Keirah Dowd was best on.

Xavs will come up against Coburg next week, whilst Collegians will do battle against Scotch in what should be an interesting game.

Kew showed everyone on Saturday why they were the most dominant team outside of St Kevin’s last season, keeping Fitzroy goalless. Whilst Fitzroy showed hope in their pre-season hit out against Hawthorn, they were unfortunately no match for Kew, having moved up to William Buck premier division this season.

The Bears had their kicking boots on, kicking ten goals for the game, including six in the first half. Fitzroy never really looked able to threaten that lead and struggled in their first premier division game. However, it was a tough challenge first up so credit must be given to the team.

Fitzroy best players were Lynas, Bennett and Mooney.

Fitzroy now sit at the bottom of the ladder, but will be hoping for a good contest against the eighth placed West Brunswick next week. Kew will play Caulfield in what should be one of the games of the round.

The closest game of the round so far, yet Old Scotch were dominant for the entire game. West Brunswick’s first goal didn’t come until the final quarter, allowing them to bring the final margin to 27 points. The margin could’ve been a lot bigger, had Scotch been kicking accurately, recording 12 behinds for the game, including eight in the first half.

Amy Arundel was a clear best on ground, kicking three of Scotch’s four goals. It’s a strong start for the Cardinals, who moved up to the Premier Division this season after claiming the Premier B premiership last season.

West Brunswick will come up against Fitzroy next week in their first home game of the season in what should be an evenly matched contest, whilst Scotch will play Collegians at Harry Trott Oval.

It was the Lions debut in the women’s competition, and they sure put up a strong fight, with inaccuracy ultimately costing them the game.

The contest was evenly matched at every change, the biggest margin being seven points at quarter time with the Lions taking the lead. However, they never held that lead again, with a 2.3 turnaround from Melbourne Uni meaning they took a one goal lead into half time.

Overall, the game was very evenly matched with both sides kicking two goals after half time. However, Coburg’s seven behinds compared to Melbourne Uni’s four meant they were unable to put a winning score on the board.

Mia D’Agostino kicked two goals for Coburg, whilst Dacia Abela was best on ground for Coburg and Eloise O’Connor for Melbourne Uni.

Coburg will come up against Xavs next week in what proves an opportunity for a strong game, whilst Melbourne Uni has a tough outing against St Kevin’s away.