Round 3 Match Reports (2026)

Round 3 of the Premier B Women’s saw our La Trobe Senior Women come up against a strong opponent in the Port Melbourne Chargers, in what was the club’s first Triple-Header at Tony Sheehan Oval in 2026.

It had been a special week in the lead up, as the team were preparing to celebrate Eve Conlan’s 50th match, as well as the unfurling of the 2025 Senior Women’s Division 2 Premiership Flag! It was also fantastic to see the returns of Makayla D’Angelo and Ash Crane to the side!

The match was the final of the day, and in the traditional twilight timeslot. After Eve ferociously ran through the banner, the game kicked off under lights with the yellow pill in action!

The first quarter was quite an even affair, with our Trobers competing well despite starting the game in our defensive half. Kaitlyn Ritchie was given a defensive matchup by Premiership coach Sam Greene, and Ritchie delivered from the start, setting the tone for the rest of the side.

Despite conceding the first goal, star midfielder Yasmine Budic responded with a beautiful shot after receiving by hand from Nat Cappelletti which got the Trobers on the board! The quarter time break saw us trailing by 1 point, but the side was now full of confidence that they could bring the heat and compete against an elite opposition.

Port Melbourne would come out the gates fast in the 2nd quarter, as they were able to kick a couple of goals in quick succession. However, our backline stayed connected and fought hard, which enabled those 2 goals to be the only goals of the quarter. Issie Warrillow as always brought the pressure and racked up the tackles, and was supported by leader Phoebe Radford, who had some great moments in the last line of defence.

Unfortunately, a dangerous tackle late in the first half ended club legend Teresa ‘Swifty’ D’Angelo’s night. The incident lit a flame in some of our players, who were eager to stand up in Swifty’s absence.

With the wind back in our favour for the 3rd, the approach was to be aggressive and look for our talented tall Matilda Wilson, who consistently presented and competed well in the air, and at ground level.

Additionally, Ella Lauritsen reminded us of her strong form to start 2026 and came out in the 2nd half firing, racking up the tackles, touches, and territory. The quarter ended with neither team being able to add to their goal tally.

In the last, it ended a goal apiece, with our crafty forward Ineka Hart capping off some elite level ball movement which saw us transition the ball cleanly all the way from our D50. Special mention to skipper Jess Lowry, ‘Yas’, and Jasmine Smith, who all were involved in the leadup to the goal!

The final siren sounded which meant we had gone down by 23 points in a great battle. Our Trobers walked off the ground proud of their efforts. Eve Conlan was safely escorted off the ground by ‘Harty’ and Jess, with our premiership flag flying in the wind!

Next week, we look forward to welcoming a familiar foe in Parkside in what will be a highly anticipated Grand Final Rematch! Can’t wait to see everyone down at Tony Sheehan Oval for another massive encounter!