The Busselton Magpies are yet to be matched. Nine rounds into the SWFL season, they are undefeated and boast an insane percentage of 5537.5. ELIZA REILLY reveals how they’ve done it.
If you happen to catch one of Busselton women’s coach Rennie Meadmore’s halftime sprays, you’d think her Magpies were getting thumped.
But that’s not the case. Far from it actually.
Busselton is yet to lose a game nine rounds into the South West Football League women’s season. Impressive? Sure, but wait until you see the ladder.
The Magpies currently boast a mind-blowing percentage of 5537.50. That amounts to 443 points scored, at an average of more than 10 goals a game, and just eight points conceded.
Software provider Play HQ couldn’t determine whether that’s currently the best in Australia. But Busselton is thought to be the most dominant side in WA. And there’s still plenty of time left in the season to upstage a nation.
“If you heard me at any of my quarter time spiels, it probably sounds like we’re losing every game,” Meadmore told CODE Sports.
“I hold the girls to a pretty high standard. We’re constantly fighting to make each quarter better than the last. I’m lucky that I have a competitive side and I’m the same. We always want to be better than the week before.”
Busselton’s biggest win so far has come over Eaton, prevailing 15.11 (101) to 0.0 (0) in round one. The Magpies have also banked an 85-0 win over Dunsborough, an 81-0 victory against Bunbury and a 78-0 flogging of Donnybrook.
The only team to come close have been Harvey. The Bulls are the first and only team to score against Busselton this season, kicking a goal in the first quarter of their round six clash before eventually falling 3.4 (22) to 1.2 (8).
“In all honesty, we were very happy that a team was able to kick a goal and a few points against us. It meant we had to defend. It’s probably the first game of footy where we came up against that hard physicality,” Meadmore said.
“It’s what every game should be. We don’t want to walk out onto the field thinking you’re going to have no points scored against you. Our whole team was looking forward to it and even after the game, we were happy with the outcome.
“The weather was absolutely terrible. There was a shocking wind. But those are the games we look forward to because it shows you how hard you’ve worked to get where you are.”
That’s a slightly sensitive subject around Busselton. In the past, the Magpies have been on the wrong side of the percentage ledger. In 2018, they missed out on a place in finals by 1.94 per cent. Two years later, Busselton made its inaugural finals series but lost a grand final to South Bunbury by 11 points.
Then in 2022, the Magpies finally made history, winning their first SWFL premiership. Just one point separated Busselton and Bunbury in the thrilling decider.
Percentage won’t be a problem this year but Meadmore and her Magpies are out to cement a dynasty.
“To see it (percentage) sitting at what it is, it’s the end of the scale we want to be at. There’s a few of the other coaches around the club who are really egging us on. But the main goal is the premiership,” she said.
“The main thing is that we’re trying to build on what we implemented last year. We had a few game plans and training standards that we set. We’re trying to stick to what we know best and build on that so we can be at our best.”
It is hoped that the end of the WAFLW season in Perth in July will see a flood of SWFL talent return to the competition and boost other teams. A player points system designed to even out the league isn’t working just yet. Introduced two years ago, players are assigned a points value based on where they started playing football.
Local players are valued at one point to encourage loyalty. While WAFLW players could be worth up to four points. Despite their dominance, Busselton have one of the lowest points values in the league. But Meadmore is still a believer in the standard of the SWFL.
“I’m hoping that once the WAFLW season finishes, we’ll have quite a few of those girls come back to the competition. But being part of the South West rep team for the past couple of years, it goes to show our competition is one of the strongest in the state,” she said.
“I hope to see it even out over the next few years but there’s always been three to four dominant teams every year. Time will tell.”
On top of dual roles as player and coach, Meadmore also holds a relatively new third role as a mother. Just seven days after giving birth to daughter Mackenzie last year, Meadmore was back in the coaches box. And a few months later, she was not only back playing, she was a premiership player.
“I’m crazy but it’s enjoyable. My little girl now comes out every week to every training session so having a little one-year-old running around like a maniac is pretty special to see. It’s a good balance,” she said.
Meadmore is hoping to hang up the coaching clipboard soon and focus on playing. But until then, the sprays will keep coming until her Magpies can deliver the perfect game.
“A perfect quarter is playing by the same three rules we put in place each game. If we’re playing proper team footy and working on the little things around the ground, that’s a pretty perfect quarter. But you have to do that four times for it to be a perfect game,” she said.
