On a chilly Saturday afternoon at Kings Park, Seymour’s A-grade netballers faced off against Echuca in a crucial Goulburn Valley League match-up. Despite a valiant effort, Seymour fell short, losing 40-49 in a hard-fought contest.
From the first whistle, it was clear that both teams understood how much of an impact this result could have on their final standings. Both sides went on scoring runs, only to be met with one coming the other way. After a hotly contested first term, Echuca held a slight, 13-10 lead.
“I thought our first quarter was really good, actually our first half was good,” Seymour coach Ellie Fuhrmeister said.
“We came out firing, it was pretty evenly matched, we were happy that against a team like Echuca it was a really competitive tussle.”
The early parts of second quarter were much of the same. Echuca went on a 6-0 run, only to see a 4-0 run comeback from the Lions, it was a goal-for-goal affair. It looked like the game was destined for a tight end to the half, but the Murray Bombers had other ideas. Echuca was able to score six of the last seven goals, giving it a handy 26-19 lead headed into the main break.
“We spoke about that second quarter and the little patch in the last where they were able to extend their lead. It was just down to a lack of concentration,” Fuhrmeister said.
“It’s about momentum in those moments and either controlling what we’re doing, or when it’s going their way, we need to break it. We’re a young group and we’re learning to understand that.”
The third quarter saw a surge from Seymour, with Fuhrmeister and Ally Black capitalising on plenty of scoring opportunities. However, Echuca's response was swift and decisive. Holly Chadwick and Belinda Lees continued their scoring spree, maintaining Echuca's lead. The quarter ended with Echuca still in control, but Seymour's fighting spirit was evident.
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Seymour's chases a loose ball. Photo by Wayne HerringImage 2 of 5
Seymour's Rosie O'Sullivan accepts a high pass. Photo by Wayne HerringImage 3 of 5
Seymour looking serious at the half time break. Photo by Wayne HerringImage 4 of 5
Seymour's Ruby Martin outreaches her opponent. Photo by Wayne HerringImage 5 of 5
Seymour's Olivia Barry looks for a pass. Photo by Wayne Herring“We had real belief going into the fourth quarter that we could win it,” Fuhrmeister said proudly. “We made some changes, everyone contributed and added value, but Echuca are such a strong and well-structured side, they were able to fall back on that when it counted”.
In the final quarter, the Lions threw everything they had at Echuca, but the comeback effort fell short. Seymour fought and found themselves down just six half way through the term, but that would be as close as it could get to last season’s GVL A-grade premiers.
“We just had to many clumsy mistakes, forcing passes, held balls, there was a little bit of panic,” Fuhrmeister said.
“It really was one of our better performances as a team, I’m still confident in what we’re doing, just lapses at times can cost us.”
With the loss, Seymour remains in sixth position on the ladder, while Echuca solidifies its place in the top three. Seymour will need to regroup and focus on its next match against the last-placed Benalla to keep its finals hopes alive.
“The next one against Benalla, we don’t go in overconfident,” Fuhrmeister said.
“You never know what can happen this time of year, so we’ll put the focus on us. We’re hoping to put 60 minutes together to keep coming together, we’ve really started to connect.”