By Tara Murray
Riddell returned to the winners’ list with an upset win against Rupertswood in the Riddell District Netball League.
Off the back of two successive 30-goal losses, Riddell was keen to get a win and its finals hopes back on track.
It was the Sharks that got the jump early on, leading by five goals at quarter-time, but the Bombers pegged it back to two goals at half-time, before hitting the front in the third quarter.
In the last quarter, it was all the Bombers as they ran away to a 62-50 win.
Bombers playing coach Lauren Close was glad to return to the winners’ list and couldn’t have been happier with the way they did it.
“It’s really nice after having a bad couple of weeks,” she said.
“We’ve been all over the shop.
“It was good to put it all back together and have a win like that at this time of the year.”
Close said they had played some of their best netball for the year in the win, with all the work put in behind the scenes starting to show.
“It’s a credit to the whole team,” she said.
“We had B and C-grade girls playing for the majority of the game.
“It’s a credit to Riddell to develop these young girls. It helps that the majority of girls have trained together this year.”
Close said there was also a lot of support on the sidelines for the team.
Tanya Croft assisted with coaching on Saturday, allowing Close to focus on playing.
“It was nice to concentrate on the game and not have to worry what changes I had to make,” Close said.
She highlighted the role of B-grader Charlie Cole who stepped up and played in defence.
Ellen Close was named the Bombers best, while Bec Colwell shot 37 goals from 41 attempts.
Alexis Climas, who normally plays in C-grade, played in A-grade for a second successive week, shooting nine goals.
Close said the team needed another goaling option and Climas seemed to be the right person.
“Alexis and Bec have played together a lot, the spark has been cemented.”
The win makes sure the Bombers will return to finals this year. They sit fourth on the ladder with two rounds remaining.
This week they face fifth-placed Romsey, who defeated them by a goal last time.
“We’ll see how far both teams have developed,” Close said.
In other results, Rockbank was too strong for Broadford, Macedon smashed Melton Centrals, Wallan beat Diggers Rest and Romsey overcame Woodend-Hesket.
