The Dubbo Demons went into Saturday’s major semi-final quietly confident but even they were left in a state of “disbelief” when the full-time siren sounded.
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As co-captain Emily Warner points out, no side can ever feel truly confident of a win when taking on a Bathurst Bushrangers side which had previously only lost twice in the past four seasons.
And with Saturday’s game being a Central West AFL finals match, the Dubbo players had themselves as heavy underdogs.
But, as has so often been the case in the past, the underdog rose to the challenge and the Dubbo side moved through to the grand final when scoring a convincing 3.5.23 to 0.2.2 victory.
“There was probably a bit of disbelief,” Warner admitted when discussing the mood post-game.
“We were quietly confident and we certainly played pretty well so we’re really happy to be straight through to the grand final.”
The Demons’ start at Orange’s Waratahs Sportsground was key to the side’s success, they kicked the opening goal early and led by five points at the end of the first term.
The defence took centre stage in second and third terms as the Bushrangers’ highly-regarded attack was given no chance to shine.
Dubbo went into the final quarter leading by 15, and a goal and a behind in the final term sealing the momentous victory.
“We got that goal in the first couple of minutes and from then we were just on the front foot,” Warner said.
“But we never really felt comfortable until the final siren because Bathurst being Bathurst, they always play hard and we never wrote them off.”
We never really felt comfortable until the final siren.
- Demons' Emily Warner
The Bushrangers, the four-time defending premiers, were without experienced representative Keeghan Tucker but they refused to use that as an excuse.
Instead, Bathurst captain Kelsey Richards said the Demons were just the better side.
“It’s difficult to pin-point what happened other than we were just outplayed,” Richards said.
“The Demons were fabulous. They played very, very well.”
Lauren Hazell, Alicia Clark and Caroline McGrath kicked the vital goals for the Demons and while each of the Dubbo players stood tall, the latter was singled out for her effort.
McGrath was a standout when running through the middle field while Elouise Hiller-Stanbrook also ensured the Dubbo forwards were given every chance to shine.
“Caz (McGrath) has been a standout all year and she runs all day,” Warner said.
“And Elouise, we worked at training around the ruck and you could see it (on Saturday), she was getting us a lot of first ball.”
While the result was big, the amount of confidence the Demons take into the grand final is even bigger.
“We’ve definitely been improving a lot over the last couple of years and recently we’ve played really good footy as a team,” Warner said.
“The last four years the Bushrangers have been the benchmark and for us to beat them in a final, especially when we weren’t expecting it, is huge for a lot of the girls.”
The Demons now have next weekend off and await the winner of the preliminary final clash between the Bushrangers and Bathurst Giants.
The grand final will be played at Bathurst after the Bushrangers Rebels men won their major semi-final over Orange.