PORT ADELAIDE’s Next Generation Academy female under 16 team is aiming for a clean sweep against Adelaide’s NGA side after claiming a second win this year at the weekend.
Port’s NGA enjoyed a comfortable 8.5 (53) to 1.0 (6) victory on Friday night at Adelaide High School to back up its 43-point win earlier this year.
The side had not trained together since that win on March 1 because of COVID-19 and the restricted access to the training facilities at Alberton Oval.
But coach Naomi Maidment was pleased with what she described as a dominant performance.
“We got a hold on it from the outset thanks in part to the efforts of Lauren Young and Shineah Goody through the midfield and Cherylee Waters giving us plenty of rebound off half back.
“The most pleasing thing was that we had 12 bottom age players on Friday night, so half of our squad is eligible for the NGA next year as well, which is obviously really pleasing given how strong our performance was.
“We haven’t had any training as a group so it was the first time we’d been together since pre-COVID.
“We haven’t been able to be around the training facility because it is part of the AFL bubble but we’d completed three quarters of the program and it was just about getting our remaining games in.”
Port Adelaide’s NGA zone includes players from the South Adelaide, West Adelaide, Woodville-West Torrens and Norwood football clubs while Adelaide’s zone is made up of the remaining SANFL clubs - Sturt, North Adelaide, Central District and Glenelg.
Earlier this year, Port Adelaide’s squad of 25 participated in football and educational sessions at Alberton, learning what the game looks like at the next level.
That included spending time with Port Adelaide AFL staff for training around high performance, nutrition and media skills.
Game two of the three game series between the two Adelaide based NGAs was scheduled to be played on March 25 but was pushed back because of the pandemic outbreak.
Maidment said West Adelaide and Henley High School product Young and Eagles product Goody, who hails from Edithburgh on the Yorke Peninsula, got the side going.
“Lauren had a really dominant performance, primarily playing across the midfield but did drop back across half back for a little as well.
“Shineah is a bit of a smaller body in the midfield but hits the ball hard and is really highly skilled, speedy and knows how to win the ball, and showed that on Friday.”
Game three will be played at Thebarton Oval on Friday 11 September at 5pm as a curtain raiser to a SANFLW All-Stars game.
Port Adelaide U16 NGA: 8.5 - 53
Adelaide U16 NGA: 1.0 - 6
Goals: Goody, Huxtable, Syme, Young, Taheny, Kustermann, Smith, Scutchings
Best: Young, Goody, Waters, Hooper, Brooksby, Chyer
