BFNL
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East Point have emerged victorious in a top-of-the-table clash against Sunbury to stay undefeated in the Ballarat Football Netball League.
The Kangaroos produced one of their best efforts of the season to comfortably dispatch the shorthanded Lions at Eastern Oval on Saturday.
The result delighted coach Jo Bayles, who said everything her side aspired to be was on show for all four quarters.
"This week and last week was very much a yard-stick measure to get a gauge of where we are at," she said.
"It was a match that was physical, and we needed to ensure we put that four quarter effort together. It was a gratifying win as a coach."
Victory would have to be earned by East Point which only found itself up by a goal at the end of the first term.
The home side narrowly extended its lead to three heading into the main break, but as far as onlookers were concerned, the game was very much still up-for-grabs.
But the Kangaroos tightened their grip, suffocating the Lions with defensive pressure which translated into points on the offensive end of the court.
Things were made tougher for Sunbury after defender Suzi Johnson went down with an injury. Her absence added to the Lions' woes who were already without veteran defender Ashleigh Hardy.
Bayles told The Courier that minimising turnovers and smarter use of the ball was vital to her team's success.
The Victory was made sweeter for the Roos given that came without key player Emma Farrell who was rested for the contest.
"Because of her experience, she brings a lot of direction and drive to the court," Bayles said.
"There were a few nerves about how we'd go without her, but it was great to see the girls withstand the pressure."
Bayles heaped praise on defender Georgia Corbett whose defensive pressure, and ability to push-the-pace earned her best-on-court honours.
The win leaves East Point as the only undefeated team in the competition. They sit atop the ladder with eight wins from eight matches.
Bayles said the win gives her confidence that her team will be firing on all cylinders come finals time.
"To have got through a lot of the big games with wins instills a sense of belief," she said.
"As a coach I can tell them what they're capable of until I'm blue in the face, but they have to able to go out and do it."
Elsewhere Lake Wendouree rebounded from a loss last week to beat Melton by 14 goals at home. Ballarat enjoyed a comfortable 20 goal win over Sebastopol.
Melton South beat Bacchus Marsh by 15-goals in Melbourne, while North Ballarat thumped Redan by 34 goals at City Oval.
CHNL
The Creswick Tigers have pushed into the top-four of the Central Highlands Netball League A-grade competition following a comfortable win over the Ballan Blues on the road on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers were in control for the vast majority of the contest, using their experience and team chemistry to move the ball with pace across the court, ultimately leading to a 54-31 win.
They now stand as one of four teams in the league with one or less losses on the season along with Buninyong, Hepburn and reigning premiers Learmonth, who are yet to lose a game.
The Tigers' 23-goal win was the closest game on what was an exceedingly lop-sided weekend of netball in the CHNL.
Elsewhere Newlyn looked to get their season back on track, putting together a dominant 72-39 thumping against the Wickers on the road. The win is the Cat's second of the season, while the loss keeps Creswick in the bottom three with only one win to date.
The race for the final finals spot remains neck-en-neck with eight rounds remaining as Dunnstown, Bungaree and Waubra all picked up their fourth wins of the year in convincing fashion.
Carngham-Linton also is in the running for eighth place but enjoyed a bye at the weekend.