By Tara Murray
Northern Knights kicked off their season with a hard fought win against the Calder Cannons in the NAB League Girls grand final rematch.
Unlike the grand final, which was one sided in favour of the Knights, the round one clash went down to the dying minutes.
It was close all day, with no more than a goal separating the teams at any of the breaks, with the Knights winning 8.5 (53)-7.5 (47).
Knights coach Marcus Abney-Hastings said it was good for the girls to take to the park.
“It was a really nice win actually,” he said. “It has been a long pre-season for the girls and nice for them to get out there and show what they have been doing across the pre-season.
“The Cannons are a really good side and obviously their middle age players are really strong.
“We knew what we were going to get with them, they are going to be a really good team this year and we didn’t expect anything less.
“In the end we were probably pretty lucky to have a win, but we’ll definitely take it.”
Alyssa Bannan was the star up forward for the Knights kicking five goals straight.
Abney-Hastings said Bannan, who is a top age player this season, was one player he was expecting to take the next step.
“Not only is she an incredible footballer, she’s an incredible young lady,” he said.
“The energy she has round the other girls, is always positive and is infectious.
“It’s a great reward for her this year. She is really fit and had a massive pre-season and I’m really looking for her to take the next step which she showed yesterday that she’s well and truly capable of.”
Maeve Chaplin and Jess Fitzgerald were the leading possession getters for the Knights, while Ashleigh Snow, who moved into the midfield, was nearly best on ground according to Abney-Hastings.
He said the win gives them a starting point with a few things to work on in the coming weeks.
PHOTO GALLERY: Northern Knights vs Calder Cannons
This year’s Knights squad is a very different one to last year, with about 50 per cent turnover.
Eight players made their NAB League debuts on Saturday.
“It takes a little bit of time to understand what NAB League is about,” Abney-Hastings said.
“Yesterday was a great experience for those eight girls, to play in a standard of football that was really high, it’s a great experience for them.”
After having five players drafted last year, Abney-Hastings said they had another strong bunch of top age players.
He said all of them could be a chance of being drafted at the end of the year.
We’ve got a number of girls who are in the AFL academy that get spoken about a lot.
“Ellie McKenzie, Jess Fitzgerald, Maeve Chaplin and Alyssa Bannan. I imagine they would be pretty close towards the end of year.
“Some of the others are Mikayla Plunkett who plays in our backline, Steph Fell, who plays in our backline and ruck has been really strong.
“Ashleigh Snow, who played in our midfield yesterday. Abigail Bennett is looking really strong this year and I expect her to take the next level.”
The Knights this week play Geelong Falcons at RMIT Bundoora on Saturday morning.
