ROBINVALE Euston are aiming to replicate their round 1 performance against Wentworth in a bid to beat Red Cliffs at home on Saturday.
The Eagles are yet to claim a victory, after being defeated by Wentworth and Imperials, but Eagles coach Hayley Siddons said the team had performed impressively during their season opener.
She said the 78-30 scoreline did not reflect how well the girls actually performed, as they stuck to their game plan and attacked the ball as needed.
“Week one was impressive, the girls did all the things I asked them to do, they used a bit of body, they ran off it,” she said.
“Wentworth are just a whole different ball game really, they are just supremely professional and tall and all those things.”
Siddons said the team’s shooters were quite short, but the girls had worked hard to feed the ball in throughout the game.
“I was impressed with how they used the court and how they played against Wentworth’s zone, for instance,” she said.
“We had done a lot of work on how to get through that and they did that really well, I was really proud of how they went.”
Siddons said her team was looking to bounce back for this week’s game against Red Cliffs, after a less impressive performance against Imperials in round 2.
“Last week we made a few changes, we had a few people away so we brought in some under 17s girls and probably didn’t settle as well as I would’ve liked,” she said.
“I probably made too many changes early in the game and didn’t let the young girls settle so I just felt like we reverted back … we played off the ball, we ran behind people, simple errors that we are not looking for this year.”
Siddons said it was “disappointing” after the amazing effort of the girls in round 1 but commended the junior players for stepping up and learning from the experience.
“On Saturday I brought a girl who was playing her third ever game of netball into A grade just for the experience and because she added height,” she said.
“But we hadn’t done a lot of practising with her so the feeds into he could’ve been improved and that would’ve made a significant difference.
“We did a bit of moving around and brought (players) off the court so they could sit with me and look at (the plays).”
While players in the A Grade are still being moved around to find the best combination of experience and youth amongst the grades, Siddons said the team was going to be competitive this weekend.
She said with several players back in the team, she expected the girls to be in full form.
“(We will) get back to what we did against Wentworth, which is bringing the ball back more smoothly and playing the shorter game we have been practising,” she said.
“We will get it into the circle and hopefully the shooters we have now are getting better and better and we will put a few more through.”
Siddons said she was very impressed with how everyone was settling into their new positions including Taneh Romeo into centre.
“Taneh has settled into the centre position and she dominates there because she has that height and she is a great defender,” she said.
“Jade Benham is back this week and Red Cliffs has a nice tall shooter so Jade might be able to do a bit of work against her.”
Siddons said she was also very pleased with the younger girls.
“Hayley Smith (still 17) and Milly Mitchell (18) have come out of under 17s … they are going to add some depth to that senior A and B squad,” she said.
“Tayla Davidson-Armao has come across from Bambill, she adds speed and depth also through there with Mia Doherty with Bella Giofrelle.
“We have lots of speed and youth and we will only continue to improve.”
Beck Szewczuk is out for the season after breaking her ankle at the start of the round 1 game against Wentworth.
Red Cliffs are expected to be very competitive on the court after a bye last week.
The Tigers drew with Imperials in their first round.
Meanwhile, in Underbool, Wentworth and Ouyen United will face up against each other for a grand final rematch.
Mildura and Irymple will be fighting it out at Brian Weightman Oval aiming to get another win under the belts, and South Mildura will take on Imperials at the later time of 2pm at MSP.
