CASTERTON Sandford’s women’s team logged another history-maker for the club at the weekend, finishing minor premiers in the Limestone Coast Women’s Football League, for the first time.

Dropping just one game for the season, the Cats toppled the Kongorong Hawks in another resounding win in front of their home crowd and head into the first round of finals next week, on the hunt for their first A Grade premiership.

Sunday saw the Cats’ slowest start to a match since round five, the home side just 17 points up at the first break, but doubled their score in the second term, while the Hawks struggled to push the ball past half forward – three behinds in the quarter their final scores posted, for the match.

In the third, crowding around the packs and failure to convert scoring opportunities saw a low-scoring quarter for the Cats, but after a final-break pep-talk from coach Pete Hutchins and spurred on by the home crowd, the girls put together some brilliant passages of play in the final term to pile on seven goals, four.

Midfielder Libby Altorfer took out the Cats’ best-on award for the match, earning high praise from coach Peter Hutchins for her hard-hitting style.

“I say it every week I reckon, there were a couple of weeks in the middle when she went a bit quiet, but you can’t expect girls to finish the way she does every week, she must finish the game extremely sore, every week,” Hutchins said.

“The way she hits bodies, throws her body in the way.

“For a midfielder, she swaps to centre half forward, throws her body around and hits the scoreboard … she kicked three (goals) today – a great effort.”

Captain Gaby Sullivan, four-goal full forward Alena Tranter, Zhane Crawford, Brianna Spratling and Chloe Foster, were also named in the Cats’ best.

Also notable in this week’s mentions is the youngest Cat, Kirby Vise, kicking her first goal at a senior level, before taking the ground to play a second match and help out the undermanned Millicent Saints.

Coach Hutchins congratulated his team on its outstanding season and called on his troops to continue that effort into week one of finals.

“From where we started in October, fitness levels, skill levels have just gone up and that win today puts us on top of the ladder, we enjoy that, we savour that … but this week, is where the hard work starts,” he said.

“Let’s go out today, have a beer or a soft drink and after that, get our focus on next week.”

Joining the LCWFL in the 2019 season, the Cats logged just two wins to finish ninth on the premiership ladder.

The following year, with some serious recruiting and skills development under coach Mark Widdicombe, the girls won six of their eight matches to finish on equal points with the seasoned Mundulla – fourth only by percentage – before Covid-19 brought play to a halt and finals were cancelled.

The Cats struggled to get wins on the board in 2021, but their sixth-place finish was enough to earn them a berth in the semi-finals where they took out fifth-placed Mundulla by seven points, before the pandemic again brought the season to a premature halt.

Individual accolades were also afoot, with Cat Scarlett Jarrad winning the runner-up trophy in the league best and fairest, and named at full back in the league team of the year; teammates Erin Horsnell and Kate Tomkins also earned selection for the side.

Horsnell and Jarrad went on to selection in the LCWFL representative side for the SA Country Championships, the team going down by just four points in a nail-biter grand final.

Just four seasons into the competition, 2022 was the Cats’ time to shine, finishing two finals matches – including the grand final – with 100-points-plus wins, shattering the North Gambier Tigers to take out the B Grade premiership and Cat Sophie Arkun was named best on ground for the match.

At representative level, Jarrad and Horsnell were again named in the league side.

Jarrad was appointed captain and while injury prevented her from taking the field to complete the tournament, Horsnell shone, named player of the carnival and in team of the carnival.

This year, the Cats will be looking to take their game all the way and bring home the club’s first LCWFL A Grade premiership.

The weekend’s North Gambier bye also saw Mundulla jump a rung on the ladder, finishing in second place and securing a date with the Cats in the qualifying final at Penola, at 2.45pm, this Sunday.

Sunday’s winner heads straight into the A Grade grand final, while the loser will have a second chance at the big dance, taking on the winner of Sunday’s elimination match between North Gambier and Penola, the following week.

SCOREBOARD

Casterton Sandford           15.9 (99)

Kongorong                           0.5 (5)

Best:  CASTERTON SANDFORD - Libby Altorfer, Gabrielle Sullivan, Alena Tranter, Zhane Crawford, Brianna Spratling, Chloe Foster.  KONGORONG - Sarah Lucas, Janita Galloway, Hannah Kuhl-Miller, Tilah Buckingham, Alisha Angelino, Evie Sealey.

Goals: CASTERTON SANDFORD – Alena Tranter 4, Libby Altorfer, Chloe Foster 3, Brianna Spratling 2, Makayla Hutchins, Gaby Sullivan, Kirby Vise 1.