AS it stands Golden Square and Sandhurst sit in first and second place on the Bendigo Football Netball A-grade ladder.
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Both teams have had sensational starts to the season, they are undefeated and gunning for top spot on the ladder.
On Saturday, Golden Square and Sandhurst will get to face-off against one another for the first time.
Dragons coach Carol Cathcart said the round eight game was one her players had been looking forward to.
“Square is certainly the team to beat,” she said.
“They have convincingly won their games and haven’t really been tested yet.
“They are the benchmark of the competition, so it will be a great test to see where we are at and what we will need to continue to work on.”
Cathcart said the team would need to limit the amount of opportunities Square has in the goal ring.
“The key to the match will be in the centre and we have to make sure we don’t make it easy for their mid-court to feed the ball into their shooters,” she said.
“We have to pressure all across the court, so our defenders don’t have to shoulder all of the responsibility.
“We want to try and force them to use the long ball, which will help our defenders, but we will have to also have the ability to be flexible and change our strategy throughout the game.”
Cathcart said her A-grade side was well balanced and was ready to step up to Square’s challenge.
“We do have a team that is very even,” she said.
“There is no one player in our team that will win us the game, everybody has a role to play.”
The one versus two match will be played at My Jet Oval on Saturday at 3.20pm.
Meanwhile, Kangaroo Flat coach Jannelle Hobbs said after a rocky start her team was finally building up some momentum.
“Before the inter-league break we played our best game of the season against Strathfieldsaye,” she said.
“Considering the changes we have made to the team, the fact that we are sitting third, means we are heading in the right direction.”
Former Lockington netballer and current Ballarat Sovereigns star Ash Bradley has joined the Roos.
Bradley, along with young gun Zoe Davies and veteran Simone Butler have been teaming well.
The talented trio have restricted their opposition to a combined 197 goals over the first seven rounds of the season, which is the lowest of any other team in the competition.
Mel Corbett has also stepped up to fill the shooting void left by Nina Cass.
“She is over six foot tall, so we have gone back to that short and tall combination,” Hobbs said.
“She has improved out of sight since she joined our team, we are really happy with how she has been developing.”
Kangaroo Flat has a tough two weeks, travelling down the highway in as many weeks, first facing Kyneton and then facing rivals Gisborne.
“It will be a tough game and unfortunately Zoe (Davies) won’t be playing this week, which means Ash (Bradley) will slot into our defence,” Hobbs said.
“It is going to be a big two weeks, so if we can come away with two wins, that should set us up well for the second half of the season.”
The game is at the Kyneton Showgrounds at 3.20pm.
In other games, Strathfieldsaye will host Gisborne, South Bendigo plays Castlemaine and Maryborough will play against Eaglehawk.