by Kyle Champion
In a very disappointing game, Casey has given Thunder a hiding at Alice Springs. The final score saw the Casey Demons 13.7.85 defeat Thunder 3.3.21.
Danger signs started early for Thunder as the Casey Demons got on top early. It was Kate Hore who kicked the first for the Demons followed by Danielle Wearne with the second.
Another goal through Casey Sherriff had the Demons bringing hellfire and brimstone to NT. Thunder managed to finally hit the scoreboard through Anne Hatchard after a very slow start in Alice Springs to end the first term.
At the beginning of the second term, Thunder was trailing by 17 points. Things got worse for NT as Eden Zanker booted the first goal of the quarter. Thunder was desperate to get the next major and Hatchard booted her second major to give her club some hope.
That hope was soon shattered by Kate Hore as the AFLW Demon was causing real headaches up forward. Georgia Howe was next to goal as Thunder’s season was starting to unravel. The Demons hit hard again through Nikia Webber to end a poor half of football.
The third term had Stevie Lee-Thompson kick her first goal, but Eden Zanker responded by booting her second. Georgia Howe booted another for Casey as the game was becoming out of reach for NT.
Thunder managed to stem the flow of goals to end the quarter but Casey would go into the final term with a 40 point margin.
In the final quarter, the game was over but the Demons were relentless. Four unanswered goals and no response by Thunder saw NT suffer its biggest loss of the year.
Superstar Stevie lee Thompson believes they were beaten by a better team.
“They’re a very good side,” Thompson said. “They’re obviously a good side in the AFLW and they are in the VFLW. They definitely got on top of us in first and second quarters, but I thought we showed a little more heart in the third. It was a really tough game.”
With Thunder seemingly in a rut with two defeats in a row, Thompson thinks it’s time to go back to the drawing board.
“For us, it’s back to the drawing board,” Thompson said. “I know there is a lot we can improve on especially today. I know there’s a lot of good that can come out of this game, there’s so much we can do better”.
Regardless of the loss, Thompson is having a blast with the opportunity to represent NT Thunder.
“We just have to show them what we can do,” Thompson said “I love playing for NT Thunder and showing the rest of the competition what we’re all about. Being an NT girl myself, I used to play for the Wanderers in the NTFL and I love what we’ve built here with NT Thunder.”
With finals around the corner, most players are looking at the ladder, but Thompson is looking towards next week instead.
“We can’t be worried about making finals,” she said. “We have to worry about developing our NT girls and our opposition for next week. Finals is still a while away and I think there are more important things to focus on.”
With only four games left, Thunder isn’t completely out of the finals race. However, perhaps developing the young talent for the future is more of a priority than just slipping into the VFLW finals.
NT Thunder: 1.0, 2.0, 3.2, 3.2 (21)
Casey Demons: 3.3, 7.5, 9.7, 13.7 (85)
GOALS: NT Thunder – Anne Hatchard 2, Stevie-Lee Thompson
Casey Demons – Eden Zanker 3, Kate Hore 2, Georgia Howe 2, Danielle Wearne 2, Casey Sherriff, Bianca Jacobson, Nikia Webber
BEST: NT Thunder – Anne Hatchard, Dayna Cox, Jordann Hickey, Katie Streader, Gemma Cusack, Tayla Hart-Aluni
Casey Demons – TBC