The Central Highlands Netball League ladder is a pretty good reflection of the state of the league and each of its teams at the moment, Hepburn and Buninyong leading the way at the top of the table.
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While those two sides sit atop the power rankings, there's a shake up for the remainder of the table, with some current top eight sides dropping outside the top group.
A lot goes into how a team is actually travelling along with their win total; toughness of their schedule, how they've played against the best sides and injuries suffered.
That's what I took into consideration as I ranked each side through the first six rounds of the season.
1. Hepburn
The Burra sit undefeated on top of the ladder and have an average winning margin of 56.8 goals.
Have only beaten one side in the top eight, Springbank, but it was by a whopping 49 goals.
Big game against Buninyong coming up in round eight to really test themselves.
2. Buninyong
Buninyong possesses the league's best defence at the moment, allowing just 81 goals through five games.
It sits undefeated and second on the ladder by percentage, wins over Springbank, Gordon and Dunnstown.
Defeated the Tigers for the first time in a long time, now has Hepburn in its sights to really test itself.
3. Learmonth
Despite losing some core senior players, the Lakies have had a stellar start to the season, sitting 4-0.
Got the better of Rokewood-Corindhap in round one, handing the Hoppers their only loss to date.
Has an easier schedule than most to start the season, their first major test coming in round 11 against Springbank.
4. Springbank
The Tigers have won the games they were supposed to but have struggled against the league's top two sides, Hepburn and Buninyong.
Only scored 18 goals in both of those losses, going down by 18 and 49 goals respectively.
Will still be there abouts at season's end, but sits fourth in the power rankings after six rounds.
5. Beaufort
The biggest improvers in 2021, already bettering its 2019 wins total of three.
Was able to claim a big win over fellow improvers Skipton, but was put back in its place by Springbank by 34 goals.
Big games against Gordon, Buninyong and Dunnstown will test the Crows.
6. Rokewood-Corindhap
The Hoppers have flown under the radar to start the 2021 season, but sit fifth with a 4-1 record.
Only loss came to Learmonth in round one, winning four straight since against Carngham-Linton, Waubra, Skipton and Bungaree.
The win over the Emus was strong, but needs a big scalp to jump into the top five of the power rankings.
7. Gordon
It's been an up and down start to Gordon's season, hence its 2-3 record.
Only wins came against Bungaree and Newlyn which keep it at seventh on this list, but challenged Springbank well, going down by 14 goals.
Another side in need of a win over a contender to climb higher on this list.
8. Skipton
The Emus started strongly, back-to-back wins over Gordon and Dunnstown to start the season.
Three losses on the trot to contenders Beaufort, Hepburn and Rokewood-Corindhap bought them down a peg, but got back on the winners list in round six over Creswick.
Winnable games over Clunes and Ballan coming up, followed by a huge clash with Learmonth. They need to win or seriously challenge the Lakies in that game.
9. Dunnstown
Similar to Skipton, Dunnstown has had an up and down start to the season, unable to win back-to-back games yet.
Good wins over Waubra, Bungaree and Newlyn but haven't been able to beat a challenger yet, losing to Skipton, Springbank and Buninyong.
10. Creswick
The Wickers have claimed wins over Clunes and Carngham-Linton but have struggled against the league's best, falling to Learmonth and Skipton and 12th placed Waubra.
A strong performance against Springbank and a win over Bungaree in the next two weeks takes it higher up this list.
11. Waubra
Waubra started the season 0-4 but have rebounded nicely to win two games in a row over Creswick and Ballan.
Back-to-back losses to Beaufort and Hepburn in rounds two and three by 36 and 68 goals respectively hurt the Roos in this edition of the power rankings.
A two-goal loss to Rokewood-Corindhap takes it just above Clunes.
12. Clunes
Clunes currently sit inside the top eight but have only won two games and had two byes, handing it a further eight points.
Its only wins have come over Ballan and Carngham-Linton, while its losses to Creswick and Learmonth have been by seven and 55 goals respectively.
Need to beat a contender to climb higher in the power rankings.
13. Newlyn
Newlyn have had a tough start to its season opposition wise, Springbank, Buninyong, Gordon, Dunnstown and Beaufort its first five opponents.
It's competed well against these sides too, rebounding from big losses to Springbank and Buninyong to challenge Gordon, Dunnstown and Beaufort, its biggest deficit in those three games just 13 goals.
It doesn't get any easier with Rokewood-Corindhap and Hepburn coming up, but the Cats face a winnable run after these two games with Creswick, Ballan and Clunes the next up.
14. Bungaree
Player exodus in the off-season hasn't helped Bungaree's form this season, but to its credit it's competed well all year.
Only big losses came to Buninyong and Hepburn, as many other teams in the competition have also suffered.
Challenged other contenders Gordon, Dunnstown, Beaufort and Rokewood-Corindhap well, however, just doesn't have the squad at the moment to get it over the line.
15. Carngham-Linton
The Saints won strongly against Ballan but have struggled apart from that.
Their schedule has been tough, Beaufort, Hepburn and Rokewood-Corindhap three of its six opponents to start the season.
An average losing margin of 40.2 goals doesn't help their case, however.
16. Ballan
Ballan suffered the same fate as Bungaree, losing the majority of its 2019 A Grade team, including its coach Narelle Perkins.
An average losing margin of 37 goals so far this season is reflective of that for the Blues.
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