The Bacchus Marsh players went in to their first bye of the AFL Goldfields Women’s division 2 season feeling good about their immediate and long-term prospects.
In the first year of the revamped state competition, with the Cobras playing different sides to previous years, they sit inside the top four and are setting themselves for finals.
Cobras coach Hayley Gossow said the new competition presented both challenges and opportunities.
“It’s been a bit different this year, playing all new teams, so each game you go into you don’t know what to expect,” Gossow said.
“That was a bit interesting for both players and coaches, but it seems to have settled down now and we’re not too far away from where we’d like to be.
“We’re still in a five-team competition and the top four play finals, so that hasn’t changed … we’re in with a good chance of finals.”
With two wins from six games, Bacchus Marsh has been inconsistent, but Gossow said that was to be expected after welcoming so many new players this year, some of whom had never played before.
“Our number one ruckman [Elise Korteman] is brand new to the sport, and she’s made the initial squad for the Goldfields inter-league, so that’s a big positive,” Gossow said.
“Zhoe Clarke is also training with that squad and all the new girls have really impressed after only playing a little bit of school footy.
“Seeing the girls who haven’t played before and watching them perform so well has been great.
“A lot of this team has been together for three years, so they [the new players] had to make up some ground, which they have done.
“This group can go as far as they want. They’ve got the skills and the determination to beat any side – we just need to string four quarters together every week.”
The Cobras boast the competition’s leading goal scorer in Madalyn Clarke, with her 13 majors three clear of the next best in the competition.
On the back of a hugely successful inaugural AFL Women’s season, Gossow said there was no better time to be involved in women’s football.
“We’re not seeing much of a difference in crowd numbers or playing standards just yet, but there’s definitely interest for girls coming into the sport,” she said.
“Our youth girls have grown hugely. We started with two or three under-13 girls and now we’ve got 20-odd which is just incredible.
“Having the pathway from juniors all the way through to seniors will only make the club stronger.”
