VFLW match report: Hawks secure crucial win over Casey

Box Hill has secured a vital 27-point victory over the Casey Demons in the penultimate round of the VFLW home and away season. 

It was a tight affair throughout the game, with the usual Casey Fields breeze playing a factor. 

However, the Hawks were able to use the breeze to their advantage and break the game open in the fourth term with four majors.

They now head into next week’s must-win clash against the Southern Saints with a bit of momentum. 

The Hawks got off to a strong start, immediately feeling the impact of Abbey Holmes’ return. 

Holmes started the game in the midfield and ended up with an assist in the opening minutes, thanks to a long kick to advantage in the path of Maddie Boyd. 

Boyd made no mistake in front of goal, curling it through the Casey breeze to slot Box Hill’s first. 

It was a seesawing contest for the rest of the first term before Casey’s Teagan Williams broke through the pack for a major in the dying minutes. 

At the end of the first quarter, the Demons held a slim two-point lead. 

Jordy Mifsud looked dangerous early, racking up 10 disposals, laying six tackles and breaking through for four clearances by quarter-time. 

The tight tussle continued in the second term, with Holmes and Boyd teaming up again in front of goal, but this time, it ended up in a point.

The Hawks continued to pepper the goals and take back the lead, all while keeping the ball in their forward 50. 

With games like these, you often need a leader to step up, and that’s exactly what Mietta Kendall did. 

Diving for a mark off a Gabby Collingwood kick, Kendall popped the ball through the goals from a slight angle and extended Box Hill’s advantage.

They then created another opportunity in the next passage of play with a fantastic spin and kick inside 50. 

This time, the goal didn’t come but the Hawks would go into half-time impressed with their efforts in the quarter.

In the third quarter, the Demons broke through for the only goal of the term, with Box Hill kicking against the wind. 

Despite dominating the disposal count (42-31 and the marking count (14-4), the Hawks held just a three-point lead heading into the final term. 

Matilda Van Berkel continued her impressive game in the third term, taking a goal-saving mark and moving the ball well from wherever she was positioned on the ground. 

The Hawks came out firing in the fourth term, using the breeze to their advantage.

After assisting a goal earlier in the day and racking up positive midfield minutes, Holmes snuck forward to kick her first goal of the season on the goal line. 

It was then Jade Wise who got on the scoreboard for a second straight week, putting it through from a similar spot to Kendall’s conversion earlier in the game.

Gabby Collingwood joined the party not long after, popping through an easy set shot from the goal square, putting the Hawks 21 points up in the process. 

After that, Nicole Garner put the icing on the cake with a ripping snap from the pocket, handing the Hawks a 27-point win. 

CASEY	1.2	1.2	2.3	2.3 (15)
BOX HILL	1.0	2.5	2.6	6.6 (42)

 

Goals: Boyd, Collingwood, Garner, Holmes, Kendall, Wise 

Disposals: Mifsud 17, Peterson 17, McLinden 14, McRae 14, Muir 14, Boyd 11