Star Gisborne goal attack Claudia Mawson wins best on court medal in stirring BFNL netball premiership triumph

Fortunately for the Bulldogs, they had someone pretty 'special and exceptional' of their own on the court in Claudia Mawson.

The silky-skilled goal attack stood tallest for the brilliant Bulldogs in their thrilling one-goal come-from-behind win over the Dragons and was the popular and astute choice as best on court.

That the superbly-credentialed 21-year-old, with her wealth of Victorian Fury, VNL and other representative netball experience, was able to remain so cool, calm and collected throughout the see-sawing contest - in particular in a frenzied final five minutes - should come as no surprise.

Mawson had been involved in two previous similar close encounters in country football-netball league grand finals and not just withstood the pressure, but relished it.

"I played in a premiership with Echuca in 2018 and it was won in exactly the same circumstances; we beat the undefeated team by one," she said.

"So that's the second time I've done that.

"It was pretty much even the whole game, a goal or two in it, but we found ourselves up when the final siren went, so it's happened twice now."

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Mawson admitted the final minutes of Saturday's thriller were 'pretty much a blur' as the Bulldogs rallied from five goals down with five minutes to play.

"It was through the roof ... that was intense," she said.

"I don't know what really happened in that final quarter. Some things fell our way and we just kept fighting.

"I did have a couple of looks at the scoreboard midway through that final quarter and I thought 'we are going to have to start winning some ball' otherwise it's not going to go our way.

"You can look at the scoreboard as much as you like, but you've got to get the intercepts, which we did.

"Our defenders were phenomenal .... and Sandhurst is such a strong attacking team, so for us to get ball, they had to work pretty hard.

"They did well all through the game, particularly in those final moments.

"Sandhurst is a high-scoring team, so to keep them under 40 is a really good effort."

Mawson said the final siren had brought plenty of relief, after the Bulldogs had managed to milk the last 30 seconds of the contest by keeping possession in their defensive half.

"I saw someone hold up that 30-second sign on the bench, so I thought we just have to hold onto it here, we're one up" she said.

"It felt like a long time, a lot longer than 30 seconds. But we held on."

The win capped an exciting and prolific first two years in the BFNL and at Gisborne for Mawson, highlighted by dual selection in the BFNL representative team, regular star performances and now a premiership.

She expects to be back in red, white and blue next season.

"You've got to give back-to-back a crack," she said.

As one of the co-captains alongside fellow young star Kirby Elliott, Mawson said she was proud of the resilience and poise shown by the entire playing group in Saturday's epic contest.

"We have some young girls in there, who haven't had much grand final experience at this level, so for the likes of Tori (Skrijel) to stand up, push through and keep their heads is amazing," she said.

"But having someone like Tiana Newman with so much experience - she's just a superstar."

Mawson reserved special praise for her cool young partner in the goaling circle, Skrijel, playing her first season in A-grade.

The teenager - much like the Bulldogs leader - continually elevated her game throughout the season and can now lay claim to having played in consecutive premierships, after winning a 17-and-under one in 2022.

"Her game has just gotten better and better," Mawson said.

"At the start, we probably weren't sure where should we fit in, but she had a really strong year in the 17s last year.

"It is a big step up playing against women and not girls your own age, but she is so strong.

"I've been lucky enough to play with her, talk with her and watch her develop.

"She's an exciting one to watch."

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