What we learned from NTFL 2023-24 Round 4
A resurgent Southern Districts, continued success for the Saints sides and some thrilling individual efforts underlined a thrilling round of NTFL action. Read the Round 4 talking points here.
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A resurgent Southern Districts, continued success for the Saints sides and some more thrilling efforts were the big talking points from NTFL Round 4.
St Mary’s Darwin Buffaloes, Southern Districts and Nightcliff were the winners in the men’s premier league.
Meanwhile, it was Buffaloes, PINT, St Mary’s and Nightcliff who grabbed victory in the women’s competition.
Read all the big talking points from the round below.
Districts burst back on the scene
Southern Districts proved they’re still a side to watch out for this season with a dominant 20.17 (137) to 4.4 (28) win against PINT.
While an even encounter was expected, Districts weren’t the favoured side coming into the match, with PINT fresh off a one-point thriller of a victory against reigning premiers Waratah.
Meanwhile, Districts had only won one game from their opening three matches, a 10-point defeat of the Tiwi Bombers.
But from the word go the game was in Crocs’ favour with premier ruck Matt Dennis in control, while Dean Staunton, Matt Johnston and Jake McQueen were everywhere in the midfield.
The side hit the contest hard and results came their way either through former AFL players such as Jed Anderson and Nakia Cockatoo or Rising Star contenders like Stanley Waistcoat.
Districts coach Shannon Rusca said he would have probably laughed if someone had told him what the score line would have been beforehand.
“We knew they’re very body strong and get a lot of numbers around the footy and they’re very contested,” Rusca said.
“We had to match them in those aspects, we came to do a job and we were pleased with the result, I thought we executed very well.
“It was going to be tough in a 2pm game, and sometimes these games open up more and don’t give a true reflection of how tight and physical the contest was.”
The match was a reminder to the rest of the league this is a Districts side not to be underestimated, and the more they work their way into the season the more dangerous they will get.
Saints on strong run, but inaccuracies could cost them
St Mary’s have been one of the form sides to start the season, with three wins from four matches, but their inaccuracies in front of goal need to be fixed.
The Green Machine was arguably the better side, in certain aspects, against Nightcliff in Round 1, gathering more of the ball and making more scoring shots.
But they stood no chance kicking 5.13 against a very accurate Tigers unit.
Again, against Wanderers, they were prone to missing kicking 18.21, this time fortunate they dominated as much as they did restricting the Muk Muks to just 11 scoring shots.
It’s a luxury they won’t always have, particularly with tougher matches on the horizon.
The Saints are one of only three sides, including the Buffaloes and Tiwi, to average more behinds than goals so far this season.
Jackson Calder, back sooner than some would have expected from injury, is once again hugely important in this department for Saints.
The dual Dennis Dunn leading goal kicker booted seven goals in his return to the field, but more importantly he has only kicked one behind so far this season, proving his accuracy.
The Saints are one of only three sides, including the Buffaloes and Tiwi, to average more behinds than goals so far this season.
Saints women continue dangerous run
Saints delivered the second 250+ point defeat of Wanderers in as many weeks, to hit the top of the table ahead of reigning premiers PINT.
It sets up a top of the table clash between the sides in Round 5, an encounter which will play a big role in who gets the minor premiership this season.
And while they kicked all the points against the struggling Muk Muks, who conceded 256 points to Nightcliff the week before, Saints stuck to their structures to get the win.
In many ways it was a training run ahead of the big one for the Green Machine, with their mids ensuring they worked their transitions well enough to give everyone time on the ball.
Emma Stark was the obvious stand out in front of goal kicking 10 goals to force her way to the top of the goal-scoring tally with 19 goals from three matches.
Vice-captain Jemma Iacono scored five goals as reward for her midfield escapades, while Amelia Kahr, Grace Senior and Emily Forshaw were also among the multi-goal scorers.
It puts Saints in good stead to take on the Queenants in what is building up to be a blockbuster Round 5 encounter.
Of the teams both have played Saints beat Nightcliff by nine points and Waratah by 36 points, while PINT beat Tigers by one point and Tahs by 42 points.
Palmerston bring physicality
It may have been a losing cause but Palmerston brought the physicality and showed plenty of fight in their battle against a bolstered Buffaloes.
It’s the kind of fight we’ve been waiting for from this young Magpies side, which has started the season a little further off the pace than they would have anticipated.
Losses to sides such as Wanderers and Tiwi, both being games they would have pencilled in wins for, meant Palmerston were in for a tricky year.
But against the Buffaloes they showed fight, and save a 10 minute period at the start of the third quarter where the Double Blue scored five consecutive goals they were in the game.
This was a side with a plan doing everything they could to limit danger men such as Mitch Robinson, Rhys Mathieson and Jarrod Stokes, despite their prowess with the ball.
And it very nearly worked with Phil Wills an instigator, while Lucas Edmonds was everywhere in attack scoring four goals from the encounter.
Those Buffaloes ins, including Blake Coleman, had massive games for the Double Blue, particuarly Mathieson and Robinson who were everywhere across midfield.
The Magpies have tougher games ahead, and there are still missing pieces in their makeup, but if they play more matches like this one they won’t be too far away from a win.
Nightcliff’s efficiency
The Tigers are the side most likely to score a goal in league with an average of 13.8 across their opening four games, and they’re also the least likely to score a behind with a 7.0.
By that token it is the largest gap between average goals and average behinds of any side in the competition.
Brett Kennedy and Michael Mummery lead the side’s scoring after four matches with 11 and eight goals respectively, while they only have three behinds between them.
It’s a show that at the moment Nightcliff, even if they’re not always the most dominant across the park, are the most efficient when they get their chances in front of goal.
And as the old adage goes, goals win games, and Nightcliff are sure getting them when needed.
They led Tiwi through the early, uneasy stages because they were better in front of goals, and the scoreboard pressure allowed them to take control further into the match.
It was the same case against Saints who got more possession in Round 1, however Nightcliff’s kicking where it mattered earned the win.
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Originally published as What we learned from NTFL 2023-24 Round 4
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