Fightback a turning point for Hawks says Hobbs; Bloods won’t dwell on draw
BY KIEREN ILES
BENDIGO TIMES
EAGLEHAWK coach Jannelle Hobbs hopes the Hawks’ plucky fightback in a draw against South Bendigo will prove a turning point in their development.
The Hawks, who play Gisborne at Canterbury Park this Saturday. came from six goals down at quarter time and by as many as eight goals at one point to claim a 47-47 draw in a rain-marred clash under lights at the QEO on ANZAC Day last Friday.
It was a fitting finale to a fluctuating contest in which the Hawks fought bravely to overcome their early deficit, before the Bloods rallied late to even the game up, just when it looked like Eaglehawk would claim victory.
The draw advanced both teams record to 1-1-1 after three rounds.
While she admitted the Hawks had their chances to seal what would have been a crucial win, Hobbs was nevertheless pleased to win a share of the four points.
“We did have a bit of a slow start, but I was happy with how the girls responded after last week (a 53-goal loss to Kangaroo Flat) and put everything we have been working on into practice,” she said.
“It would have been interesting on a drier day, what the results may have been.
“Obviously, the win would have been nice, but it was such a good game that a draw might have been a fitting result.
“All our girls played their role.”
The Hawks, who were again without goal attack Lucy Morcom (knee injury), got big contributions from wing defence Darcy Lloyd and goal shooter Chloe Langley, while Allira Holmes and Morgan Keating did all that was asked of them in defence.
Putting a quieter performance against Kangaroo Flat behind her, Langley shot 26 goals from 27 attempts in the tricky conditions, combining well with goal attack Abbey McLean.
Hobbs gave full praise to Lloyd, who has stepped up to A-grade this season, to be an important part of the side.
“She’d only played A-res, but I saw a lot of potential in her at the start of the year,” she said.
“I think she’s got a big future. She played a great game and is starting to believe she can do it now and match it with the A-grade girls.
“She’s a hard worker and a very fit girl and is only going to get better and better.
“You have to have faith in the young girls.”
The next challenge for the Hawks will be backing up their improved effort this Saturday against reigning premier Gisborne, which moved to 2-1 following a big win over Strathfieldsaye.
Hobbs has enjoyed success against Gisborne in recent seasons, having guided her former club South Bendigo to victories over the Bulldogs in both 2022 and their premiership-winning season of 2023.
“I think (ANZAC Day) was a bit of a turning point for us – the girls are very confident in what we are trying to set up structure-wise,” she said.
In the opposing corner, South Bendigo coach Lauren Bowles said while the draw was a disappointing outcome given the Bloods’ slick start to the match, they were happy to have salvaged two points from the contest.
The Bloods still led by three goals at half-time and two at three-quarter time, but found themselves behind in the dying stages before tying the game up.
“The first quarter was awesome, but from there we just let them control the match and they did a very good job of that,” Bowles said.
“The last three quarters was not the style of netball we would like to play.
“I’d like to think we are a really skilful team, but they found a way to get on top of us. I’m sure Jannelle would be happy with how her players responded.
“In the end I was relieved to get away with the draw as I felt Eaglehawk had real momentum in that last quarter.
“We got plenty of ball, but I guess the trend with us at the moment is we are not valuing ball in attack; we are throwing too much away and then the defenders are having to work super-hard to get the ball back.
“They are doing a great job, but we are not going to win games by just winning the ball in defence, you must be able to execute in attack.
“All credit to Eaglehawk, they set up a beautiful defensive press going down the court, which rattled our players a bit.”
Experienced defender Steph MacCallum (Goode) emerged as the Bloods’ best, while star goal shooter Gabe Richards was her usual strong self in attack in an intriguing one-on-one battle with her co-coach of Elmore’s 2022 and ’24 HDFNL premiership teams, Allira Holmes.
“She (Richards) was pretty dominant, as you’d expect when she is shooting the bulk of our goals,” Bowles said.
“She did the best she could with the ball that was getting delivered to her, but at times we couldn’t even get into a position where we could give her the ball.”
Andrea Wilson also impacted strongly in centre for South Bendigo, continuing her solid return to the BFNL ranks.
Keen not to dwell on the draw, the Bloods will not get a chance to quickly make amends courtesy of a bye in round four.
They will return to action on May 4 against league powerhouse Sandhurst.
South Bendigo has featured in the last four draws in BFNL A-grade netball.
The Bloods drew two games in 2023, against Castlemaine in round 18 and Strathfieldsaye in round six.
Their round four match in 2022 against Kyneton also ended in a tie.
The 2022 and 2023 draws came during new Eaglehawk coach Hobbs’ reign as the Bloods coach.
