Southport travelled to Brisbane to take on Morningside at Jack Esplen Oval on Saturday.
Seniors
Southport defeated Morningside by 53 points, winning 10.7 (67) to 2.2 (14).
The Sharks started extremely well in the top of the clash kicking the first goal of the game within a minute.
Southport went on to kick another two goals to lead by 22 points at quarter time.
With a home qualifying final on the line, Morningside responded in the second term with two goals to zero cutting the margin to 10 points at half time.
The Sharks were able to wrestle back momentum in the third term though and extended their lead to 29 points at three quarter time.
In the final quarter the Sharks closed out the game with four goals to zero and securing the minor premiership for the third year in a row.
After the game Southport Coach Matt Lappin said, “There was a lot of stakes on today’s game and you could tell, I thought it was an epic battle.”
“It gave me great pride watching us play and the way we went about it.”
“Morningside were hard to shake. We jumped them in the first quarter but they were better than us at a lot of aspects of the game in the second quarter forcing us to reset at half time.”
“We felt like we let ourselves down a bit against Coorparoo a couple of weeks ago, so we have been working really hard to improve and I think we were ready to put our best foot forward.”
“I thought it was the best game our defenders played to only concede four scoring shots against a quality opposition.”
“We will review, freshen up and work hard on refining our game, ready for finals.”
Southport will now host Morningside at Fankhauser Reserve on Saturday 23 August in the Qualifying Final. Times are still to be confirmed.
QAFLW Seniors Round 16 – Morningside v Southport
MORNINGSIDE 0.0 2.1 2.2 2.2 (14)
SOUTHPORT 3.4 3.5 6.7 10.7 (67)
BEST PLAYERS: Stephanie O’Brien, Olivia Meagher, Megan Hunt, Melita Watts, Maddy Baldwin, Lily McDonald
GOAL KICKERS: Dekota Baron 2, Maighan Fogas 2, Olvia Meagher 2, Caitlin Miller 2, Hannah Davies, Steph O’Brien
Southport defeated Morningside by 19 points, winning 4.7 (31) to 2.0 (12).
The top of the table clash which had massive ramifications on finals placings, was not going the Sharks way early though.
Morningside led at quarter time after kicking two goals to one in the opening term.
The Sharks responded in the second quarter with the only goal to take a four-point lead into the main break.
In the third term, Southport managed to kick the only goal of the quarter again to take a two-goal lead into the final term.
It was still anyone’s game, but the Sharks were able to close out the last game of the home and away season with the only goal of the fourth quarter to secure the minor premiership.
Sienna Burnham and Peyton Mackie were electric in the midfield whilst Eliza Hand played well in the ruck.
Jo-Anna Baltais and Taneille Krzyska were brick walls in defence and Lilly-Ann Ryder was a great target up forward.
After the game Southport Coach Shannan Tate said, “I thought we played well in the first quarter as we were dominating a lot of our KPIs, we just weren’t winning on the scoreboard.”
“The message to players at quarter time was simple we just need to persist, and things will turn around, which they did.”
“It was awesome to see us stay calm and not panic after losing the first quarter. We stuck to our plan and in the end, it was a great win.”
“Heading into finals next week, it was a great confidence booster that when we are challenged on the scoreboard, we can absorb pressure and respond well.”
Southport will now host Bond University at Fankhauser Reserve on Saturday 23 August in the Qualifying Final. Times are still to be confirmed.
QAFLW Reserves Round 16 – Morningside v Southport
MORNINGSIDE 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 (12)
SOUTHPORT 1.1 2.4 3.6 4.7 (31)
BEST PLAYERS: Sienna Burnham, Jo-Anna Baltais, Peyton Mackie, Eliza Hand, Lilly-ann Ryder, Taneille Krzyska
GOAL KICKERS: Alicia Gordon, Avalon Pearce, Abbie Pluples, Lilly-ann Ryder
