ZAIDA GLIBANOVIC
FOOTBALL
FEMALE FOOTBALL GIPPSLAND By ZAIDA GLIBANOVIC THE senior men aren’t the only Moe footy team flying at the moment. First year football coach Louie Patten’s Moe Newborough Allies will be going to a Grand Final. It was a David and Goliath battle when the Allies took on Lindenow South in the preliminary final of the Female Football Gippsland League on Sunday. The Swampies had gotten the better of the Allies all year and were confident they could do it again on the bigger stage. But the Allies had different plans. The sun shone brightly on the women’s teams as they took to the Drouin Recreation Reserve. The match began with a stalemate as both sides felt the severity of the moment, managing one major each in the first quarter, the Swampies with the noses slightly in front by a single point come the first break. It looked like perhaps Lindenow South were too good, as they piled on another two goals to the Allies one, but the Allies remained in it, blessed by their accuracy in front of the big sticks. By halftime, the scores were Allies 2.0 (12) to the Swampies 3.1 (19). Patten, the Allies playing-coach and ruck for the day, must have given the best halftime speech as the team came out with a hunger in their hearts. The Allies managed to keep the Swampies scoreless for the entire third term while adding two straight majors to their own score to lead by five points going into the fourth. With all the momentum, the Allies went full steam ahead toward a Grand Final in the last term. The Swapies only managed a single behind after the halftime siren due to the enormous will and pressure from the Allies’ side. To put the final nail in the Swampies coffin, the Moe and Newborough Allies kicked one last final goal to book in their tickets to the big dance. Coach Patten said it was a tough battle in the beginning, as “both teams came out firing from the start,” but after halftime, something gave way and “Lindenow (South) ran out of steam.” The final scoreboard read Moe Newborough 5.0 (30) to Lindenow South 3.2 (20). The Allies’ goals came from the boot of Taylor Dow, who kicked two, Jade Abbott, Chloe Dodd and Sarah Williams. Patten could not be any prouder of her team. “Everyone had a role to play – they all absolutely killed it out there. They all played their hearts out and got the job done,” she said. The team had challenges with numbers all year but Patten made it work. “Foster folded a week before the season started and I reached out to see if any of their players still wanted the opportunity to keep playing footy. We had a couple come over to play a game to see if they would like it. They loved it so much they are now part of the team,” she said. Patten said the preliminary final win was just reward for many involved. “Well deserved win for a team that is still building,” she said, considering the team consisted of “only six faces from last year and a heap of new women who have picked the game up in no time.” After that brilliant display of accuracy and willpower, the Allies will now face a dominant Boisdale-Briagolong in the Grand Final at 12.15pm this Sunday (August 20). The Allies get to play a Grand Final on their home deck at Ted Summerton Reserve. Moe supporters will be hoping this sets the tone for more Moe football teams to reach a Grand Final this season.
