Round 15 Match Reports (2026)

For the second time this season the La Trobe Senior Women travelled to Doncaster Reserve, this time to face a familiar opposition in Old Carey. Some extra additions to the squad meant that we had 4 players on the bench, a rare occurrence for the season.

The game got underway and there were some great end-to-end patches for both teams. For La Trobe, the movement around stoppage was brilliant, with the midfielders linking up well to get the clearance numbers up early. After a couple of missed La Trobe opportunities in front of goal, Old Carey hit the scoreboard with the first goal of the match. Thankfully, a Kaitlyn Ritchie spoil on the line prevented the home side from getting back-to-back goals in quick succession.

The Trobers came together at quarter time trailing by 5 points, confident that they were capable of getting a strong foothold on the match.

A new quarter began, and there was nothing getting past Eve Conlan, whose fierce attack when the ball was in dispute was incredible to witness. Eve won her own ball time and time again, inspiring her teammates to do the same across the ground.

La Trobe kept banging on the door of the Old Carey defensive 50, and Matilda Wilson was the one to get the Trobers in front. A flushed shot from not far out left some questioning of the whereabouts of the ball. Not long after identifying the Sherrin, the rain presented itself and altered the conditions.

Unfortunately, defender Ash Crane had a collision with her opponent causing immediate concern. A serious ankle injury ended Ash’s day, and we wish her all the best with recovery.

Old Carey countered with a goal of their own straight after the incident, giving the opponents back their lead going into the long break.

The second half commenced and a couple of changes were made. One of those changes saw Tara Chetcuti move from attack to defence, where she played a critical role in bringing added composure and footy smarts to the defensive half of the ground.

With La Trobe needing a response, club legend Teresa D’Angelo stepped up to the plate and kicked one right through the middle after earning a 50m penalty.

A strong team defence kept Old Carey scoreless in the 3^rd, with La Trobe taking a 4-point lead into the final term.

The message at 3QT was that adding to the score was a key to victory, with the players challenged to play positively in an attempt to secure our 3^rd win of the season.

Talented midfielder Claire Wilson came out of the blocks firing in the last, setting the tone with a top-notch centre clearance which is starting to become a trademark manoeuvre.

Old Carey took back control of the game in the middle of the quarter, and their momentum gave them the ultimate reward they were seeking. Despite a late effort to transition the ball forward from defence, time unfortunately ran out which gave Old Carey a 4-point victory.

It was a genuine flip of a coin match, and it was disappointing to go down with a victory within reach.

Leaders Steph Castagnini and Jess Lowry were instrumental performers on the day, as well as Yasmin Budic, who’s in some quite incredible form as we edge closer to the end of the season.

Next week will be a 2:45 p.m. match away against Marcellin, as many will have their fingers crossed for the return of Ella Lauritsen, who started the season remarkably well before an injured finger intervened.