In their first home game of the season, the VFLW Hawks lost to Essendon by 14 points on Saturday.
Although the girls in the brown and gold led for three quarters, the Bombers were able to overcome the Hawks in the last ten minutes of the game to claim victory.
With tough conditions hindering goal scoring, accuracy was one of the biggest challenges of the day, with the Hawks scoring nine behinds and only one goal for the match.
The first term opened with a look of potency for the Hawks, but they weren't quite able to capitalise on their dominance, with Jessie Williams, debutant Eloise Chaston, and Katie Angelis unable to convert in front of goal.
The Hawks' momentum carried into the second term, with the Bombers only managing a single behind. The Hawks managed to maintain control over the ball and Izzy Khoury and Nadia von Bertouch were both instrumental in the midfield.
Finally in the second quarter we saw the first goal of the game, from Eloise Chaston in her first game for the brown and gold.
AFL match report: Four points go begging in the west
At half time the Hawks led by three points, and the aggression was high on both sides. Tamara Luke, in her first game for the Hawks since 2019, made her presence felt by dominating the opposition all over the ground.
The third quarter was the most challenging, with heavy rain and low visibility making goals hard to come by and skills were tested.
Hawthorn managed three behinds for the term and didn’t allow the Bombers to score more than a single point.
The girls went into the fourth quarter quietly confident, but this didn’t last long.
The opposition were not willing to give up without a fight, and for the entire quarter the aggression on field was palpable.
Finally, Essendon managed to score two goals in a row, their best effort since the first quarter. It suddenly put them 14 points ahead and with only a few minutes left, there was no time left to recover.
It wasn’t the result that the girls hoped for, but a marked improvement since the last time the two teams met in Round 3.
Despite the loss, there was lots to smile about – three quarters of quality football from a side that has struggled in the season thus far, and great performances from some emerging stars.
FINAL SCORE
Essendon 4.5.29
Hawthorn 1.9.15
Goals: Chaston
Best: Chaston, Luke, Williams, Carbone
