AFLW Round 2 – North Melbourne vs St Kilda: Team Efforts Connecting for ‘Roos and Disconnecting for Saints

Sunday 7 February 2021
1:10 pm
Arden Street Oval, Melbourne

 

Saints demonstrated the team play and attacking footy, and the family love of Nathan and Alice inspired us last week. On Sunday, I watched the Geelong versus North Melbourne game in between running and kicking footy at an Amagasaki park. Kangaroos dominated hugely and won the one sided match. I was worried about the Round 2 game to be honest.

 

First clearance is made by St Kilda and Saints deliver footy towards the goal pocket, but Kangaroos put pressure on the visitors inside 50. Then St Kilda gets numbers back in good pressure. At last Bateman takes a mark and scores a goal at 4:25.

 

North keep dominating footy and push towards their forward line. The best Kangaroo of the day, Kearney hitting the scoreboard with a behind, Roos keep doing their footy work and Randall scores a goal from 45 metres out.

 

Then Saint girls dominate again but Ashmore takes an intercept mark in the centre field and her side takes back the tide. Abbatangelo takes a mark 30 metre out but her set shot goes to the right hand side.

 

Vogt shows efforts and encouragement in Saints forward line. Her good tackling awards her a free kick, but the set shot is short. Slow traffic is pushing slightly and finally footy is Smith’s hand, but the 18-year-old misses an opportunity.

 

After the first break, Kangaroos dominate footy first kicking through the corridor. Bannister takes a mark in tight angle on boundary and her set shot just brings a minor score.

 

Running in happens on the field and finally Phillips’ good running in and kick is passed onto Gutteridge and then our best goal kicker Greiser. She normally has good abilities in kicking long but this time hits the scoreboard only with a behind.

 

Saints’ pressures are high such as Phillips laying tackles, but kicks are unfortunately often inefficient, like White and Patrikios kicks go out of boundary.

 

Co-captain Shierlaw uses her advantage of height in taking marks and running in. She gets an opportunity after Vogt’s kick from 50 metres out, but ends up scoring a behind. Her bad luck continues when she can’t win a contested mark.

 

And then finally the young first year player Smith picks footy in the right spot and kicks a goal. She is talented and already has good skills. Smith’s goal brings Sainters a hope to bounce back.

 

St Kilda keep showing efforts with gaining possessions and kicks, but kicking inefficiency brings stoppages. After a series of handpasses in the midfield, Shierlaw runs fast and kicks but misses an opportunity. The home side leads by five points at the main break.

 

In the last two quarters, St Kilda girls showed efforts but they made errors and wrong decisions, and in addition Kangaroo girls performed better.

 

Watt’s sliding tackle comes first that gives away a free kick to Gavalas who kicks only one goal at the third quarter.

 

McDonald dropping footy and Shierlaw unable to win a contested mark added and the team’s inability to dominate advantages worsens.

 

North Melbourne delivers footy coast to coast and the super ruck player King gets a good opportunity, but her set shot is missed.

 

In the last minute, McCarthy picks and runs with bounces, but it is too late.

 

Last quarter is the same; while St Kilda girls play hard trying to hit the goal square, North Melbourne’s pressures force us to deliver footy back and forth. At the end, the better side shows better skills. Riddell runs and finds open space for a kick. It is the Kangaroos’ fifth off.

 

And beforehand Garner shots a goal directly close in the post. North gets chances more and does the tip job while Saints waste opportunities.

 

St Kilda girls are all quiet at the last half, but Patrikios gains 27 possessions hitting the club’s new record. Smith has good skills in running, picking and kicking. Both girls are teenagers! Shierlaw runs and takes marks well but needs to work hard. And Greiser also has to get the energy back. She is too quiet on Sunday.

 

Putting the disappointment beside, watching AFLW brings me positives as I create new own footy drills from seeing how girls play. Last week in Amagasaki, I started hugging a tree and pushing footy so that I will be able to dispose footy while tacking. Then I try to implement running in and kicking footy like how some of my girls play on field.

 

On Monday, AFLW Round 3 fixture is released and we are facing Carlton who are winless in the 2021 season. Let’s get back and play our brand of attacking footy.

 

#letsownit

 

NORTH MELBOURNE 2.2 2.3 3.6 5.6 (36)
ST KILDA 0.1 1.4 1.4 1.4 (10)

 

GOALS
North Melbourne: Bateman, Randall, Gavalas, Garner, Riddell
St Kilda: Smith

 

BEST
North Melbourne: Kearney, Bruton, Riddell, Gavalas, Garner, Gillespie-Jones
St Kilda: Patrikios, Shierlaw, Phillips, Smith, Lucas-Rodd, Priest

 

OUR VOTES
3. Kearney (NM); 2. Patrikios (STK); 1. Shierlaw (STK)

 

INJURIES
North Melbourne: Nil
St Kilda: Jakobsson (corked back)

 

Reports: Nil

 

Crowd: 1977

 

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