There are signs of improvement for St Mary’s despite losing some key players over the off-season.
There are strong signs of improvement for St Mary’s despite losing some key players over the off-season and going through a “building phase”.
The Saints started their campaign with a series of big losses, including 35 and 47-point hidings to St Joseph’s and ladder leaders Colac respectively in the GFNL.
However, St Mary’s have now levelled their amount of wins compared to last season with a one-point thriller over Bell Park in round 5 and Saturday’s 55-37 defeat of 10th-placed St Albans at Kardinia Park.
Despite the loss of a few promising youngsters to BFL clubs, and the departure of “marquee” player Grace Parker, coach Lisa Dyer said there were signs the club had turned the corner with an emerging squad.
However, she stressed last year’s formline didn’t fully represent their season in 2022, with two draws and being on the receiving end of a few close matches.
“We said that after the Bell Park game, they were the games we didn’t quite pull off last season,” Dyer said.
“Being able to get over the line was a pretty big one.
“We’ve got the core group from last year which is in that building phase.
“Definitely lots of young girls from the club, we’re really proud of that.”
She said the squad were content with a 3-3 start to the season, having won only three last year.
“It’s a really positive start,” she said.
“We’re in a building phase, it’s a really young and developing team.”
She singled out Cleo Lofts and Mia Aitken, who were stepping out for their first A Grade seasons.
Lofts, who shot 25 goals against St Albans, is currently 10th in the league for total points, while Aitken has taken to senior netball with aplomb.
“She’s stepping onto the A Grade court like she belongs,” Dyer said of Aitken.
“It’s really exciting to see what she’s going to bring.
“The girls are coming together really nicely.”
Meanwhile, on Saturday, a strategic move of putting Ellie Kennedy on prolific shooter Sadie Stafford, who finished the game with 30 goals, paid dividends.
“We took a while to shut her down,” she said.
“I think that was crucial in how we ran away with the game.
“It was a really solid team effort.”
Originally published as A rebuilding St Mary’s claims its second successive win with a 55-37 defeat of St Albans