Melton will take on Sunbury in Saturday’s Ballarat Netball League grand final.
The Bloods booked their place in the decider with a seven-goal win against East Point in the preliminary final on Saturday.
Melton was led by young star Libby Birch, who was at her dominant best through the midcourt.
Around goals, playing coach Melissa McCauley provided a constant headache for the East Point defenders, scoring 47 goals to be the dominant shooter on the court as the Bloods won 50-43.
McCauley said she was impressed with the way her side was able to rebound from a tough loss to Sunbury in the qualifying final a week earlier. In that match, Melton gave up a five-goal lead at three-quarter time to lose in overtime.
“Last week was a bit disappointing and we spoke about that before the game,” McCauley said.
“I said once we get in front, we need to control the game and take ownership of it.
‘‘We felt like last week we let the game go by making simple errors and not backing each other up.
‘‘This week, we made sure we were doing all those things and continuing to add goals.We’re all pretty stoked to be in the grand final. I’m really happy for all the girls.”
Melton and Sunbury also played once during the home-and-away season.
On that occasion the Bloods proved too good, winning 54-38.
One player Melton must stop if it’s going to win the premiership is Sunbury shooter Sophie Gunn, who scored 46 goals when the sides met in the qualifying final.
McCauley says her team is looking forward to the challenge.
“I believe that as a team, we do have the goods to beat Sunbury,” she said.
“Hopefully, we’ll come away with the win.
‘‘Sunbury is probably in the same boat; they believe they can win.
‘‘I think it’s a testament to the competition this year that either team can win.
‘‘It will come down to who plays better on the day.
“We will try and put a lot of pressure on the feeders into Sophie and really force them to work hard.”
