OUYEN United’s six game losing streak came to an end with a confidence building 48 to 42 goal win over South Mildura on Saturday.
Sometimes change is as good as a holiday and a home game at Underbool appeared to be the tonic Ouyen required to finally get their second win.
The tone was set early as the Kangas found both the attacking flow and the defensive grit that were fundamental to their success last season, winning the quarter 18-8.
Ouyen were well led by Catherine Brown, who was key the efficient attack in the first quarter.
Her combination with young shooter Lexi Munro, who netted 13 goals in the quarter, was crucial to Ouyen’s success.
South Mildura somewhat responded in the second and third periods.
Youngster Emma Mottram came into the shooter role and changed the dynamic instantly, nailing 11 goals in the second quarter alone.
Ouyen suffered a nasty injury to Pauline Munro in the third quarter, which rattled the Kangas a bit.
South closed to within five goals in the fourth but couldn’t force Ouyen into making enough mistakes to challenge the lead.
Kangas coach Kyra Nathan said she was happy to end the losing streak, but was also pleased with how her squad played.
“The game felt really open and our timing felt really good,” she said.
“We created some really good defensive turnovers and we were able to convert them and get on a roll.
South did really well at coming back in the second and third quarters.
“Emma Mottram shot amazingly, and we changed a few combinations, which always takes some time to adjust to.”
Nathan will enjoy the challenge of trying to rectify early season losses with tactical adjustments for the second round of match ups after the Kangas’ bye.
After a poor first quarter, South Mildura coach Tara Bates found positives in the rest of their performance.
“We finally switched on and realised the mistakes we were making,” she said.
“We had a chat on what we needed to focus on, made some changes and came out harder.”
Bates praised the combination of Amy Lutze and Mottram in attack, highlighting Lutze’s feeds into Mottram and Mottram’s shooting accuracy.
Ouyen United 48
South Mildura 42
BEST:
Ouyen United: 48 42 Catherine Brown, Lexi Munro.
South Mildura: Sophie Fox, Emma Mottram.
