AFLW Round 2

Liam Chambers

Friday night at Punt Road and the Dees were facing the league’s most improved team on their home turf. It didn’t take the Tigers long to open the scoring when Tessa Lavey kicked the first goal after fifteen seconds. Five minutes later and key forward Katie Brennan doubled Richmond’s advantage.

Melbourne finally got on the board when Tayla Harris took a contested mark from a Tyla Hanks free kick. The big name recruit slotted nicely from her set shot in front of goal.

At the start of term two, Kate Hore evened the ledger for the Dees with her free kick from 30m out. She’s in good position to be the leading goal scorer for another year. Never backwards in being a forward, Kate later took on three Tigers in a dash for goal. Awarded a free kick for a high tackle, she launched the sherrin from 40m and watched it glide through the uprights. Alyssa Bannan took note and decided she could go back to back as well.

Her first involved a run from midfield to inside 50, getting in a couple of bounces along the way while showing a clean pair of heels. With a quick look over her shoulder, she then let loose and scored from 30m out. Her second was an uncontested mark courtesy of Daisy Pearce who noticed her running into a good scoring position. The angle was difficult but Bannan nailed it.
Daisy herself then made it six in a row for the Dees when she swept her free kick high over the goal umpire’s head.

With a handy 25 point lead, Melbourne was in a strong position after the break. Having scored the first goal of the game, Tessa Lavey also got the first of the second half; raising the spirits of the home crowd. Richmond then got lucky when Sarah Dargan was awarded a 50m penalty. She opted to keep running and scored an opportunistic goal, reducing the margin to 16 points.

It didn’t last long though as Daisy Pearce again showed great vision, spotting her fellow veteran Karen Paxman running into position. Paxman took the mark on the run, then slotted from the set shot to restore Melbourne’s half time advantage.

The Tigers had it all to do in the final quarter if they stood any chance of reining in the the Dees. The Richmond fans briefly experienced a flicker of hope when Monique Conti displayed some individual brilliance as her running kick from an extremely tight angle somehow found its way between the posts. Unfortunately for the Tigers, that hope was abruptly snuffed out when fast thinking Tayla Harris pounced on a loose ball in front of goal after some stellar defending from Richmond.

Another solid performance from the Dees has helped cement their place in the highly competitive top four of the ladder. Today it’s the unfancied Saints turn when Melbourne play their first home game of this season. Casey Fields hasn’t always been favourable for the Dees but I’m predicting a big win for us in Round 3.

Go the mighty Dees!!!