Netball
26 July, 2025
Edenhope Apsley ready for tough stretch
Edenhope Apsley’s A Grade netball side will be aiming to continue their recent form when they meet Noradjuha Quantong this Saturday in round 15 of the Horsham District Football Netball League.
With 10 wins to their name and the second-best percentage in the league, the Saints have all but guaranteed their finals place with three rounds to play.
However, Edenhope Apsley have a challenging trio of games before their final round bye: a game against first-placed Rupanyup, and games against Natimuk United and Noradjuha Quantong, two teams vying for a finals spot.
After last week’s loss to Natimuk, Noradjuha Quantong will be looking to get their finals hopes back on track, with a win against the Saints enhancing the chances greatly.
Lavinia Fox, coach of Edenhope Apsley, is anticipating a good contest against the Bombers.
“They've got really tall shooting combinations, so if they miss, they can usually get the rebound, which always makes them quite a deadly team to come up against,” Fox said.
“Defensively, their pressure is very high, with really tight one-on-one pressure."
Fox said the Saints are a different team from when we played Noradjuha Quantong in round four.
“We didn’t have Dee Dee (Lambert) in our side, and Olivia Spence had only just started defence, whereas now she’s playing full games and doing really well in goal defence," she said.
“It will be interesting because I'm sure they've grown as well as the season's gone on and it was a ripper game when we played the last time.”
Entering Saturday’s game with four straight wins, Fox has been pleased with the side’s growth, and believes the side’s final three games will be good preparation for finals netball.
“We've got to make sure that we're playing our best netball and I think leading into finals, we want to be hitting our form at the right time, which I definitely feel we have been doing the last fortnight,” she said.
“It's felt like, as a team, we've really come together, which has been really awesome to see, and we've had a lot of girls that have stepped up to the moment.
“It'll be a really good test over the next three weeks to see if we can match it with the top side in Rupanyup, but also if we can match it with teams like Noradjuha Quantong and Natimuk, who, one of those teams will probably make finals.”
In another key weekend matchup, the burgeoning Natimuk side will face the ultimate test on Saturday when they host Rupanyup.
The Rams have put themselves firmly in the finals race after winning five straight, but the Panthers have had six consecutive victories of their own, winning those games by an average of 29 points.
In other games, Kalkee host Pimpinio, The Swifts will look to boost their finals hopes against an in-form Laharum side, and Taylors Lake host Kaniva Leeor United.
Harrow Balmoral have the bye.