What we learned from Round 15 of the 2023-24 NTFL season
A women’s top of the table thriller, rep footy and plenty of decisive matches set the tone for an another massive NTFL round. Check out the key Round 15 talking points.
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A top of the table thriller in the women’s premier league, exciting representative footy a decisive matches in the contest of finals set the tone for a massive NTFL Round 15.
St Mary’s, Waratah, Districts and Buffaloes all won in the men’s competition, while Waratah, Palmerston and Tiwi won in the women’s where PINT and St Mary’s played to a draw.
And our NTFL representative sides had plenty of success against the Essendon Bombers.
PINT vs Buffaloes battle heats up
PINT’s spot in the top five has become more tenuous since dropping back to back matches against Southern Districts and St Mary’s.
However, the Greenants are far from out of the running for their first ever finals stint and based on remaining match-ups are favoured to remain fifth.
PINT stayed in the running throughout both matches, and in fact led Districts for a large period of their Round 14 game, while they struck up a comeback late against Saints.
Key to their strong showings has been their defence led by Steven Motlop, Harrison Maher and Brad Ryan, who have each enjoyed strong seasons.
However, scoring was a let down in the wet weather scoring just four goals, and that’s where they will need to grow if they want to not only secure finals but also go far once they get there.
The sixth-placed Buffaloes are chasing hard and now only sit one match off the pace following their important win against a Tiwi side that never let go.
Skipper Jarrod Stokes was again impressive for the Double Blues, while Daniel Stafford, Nick Yarran and Baxter Mensch all also played important roles.
Buffaloes will be eyeing up a big score against Wanderers next up, while the Greenants have to deal with top side Nightcliff, which could put the two finals contenders on level pegging.
However, the draw switches to favour PINT from there with Tiwi and bottom side Palmerston their final opposition, while Buffaloes have top three sides Waratah and St Mary’s.
It’s a draw that not only favours the Greenants, but will give them some real momentum heading into finals.
The only issue is they won’t be playing each other in a final round thriller.
Top of the table Women’s thriller
The Women’s Premier League top two, PINT and St Mary’s, played one of the matches of the year, which ultimately ended in a draw.
The Queenants have been the women’s competition benchmark side for some time now, winning two of the past three premierships, and being undefeated so far this season.
Former AFLW Crow Jasmyn Hewett has led the side well, while Reni Hicks and Carly Remmos have been consistent performers.
Meanwhile, St Mary’s have been a side on the rise over the past couple of years and look ready to claim the title for themselves.
Billie Byers, Jemma Iacono and Jo Miller have been the standouts, and with Danielle Ponter and Kaitlyn Armstrong joining late in the year they’ve only got better.
PINT had the upper hand the first time these side’s met playing on their home turf, but in Round 15 it was St Mary’s who had the upper hand early on.
Their clearances gave them attacking possession, while they benefited from free kicks following PINT indiscretions leading to goals.
But the Queenants were never out of the encounter with the league’s leading goal scorer Steph Lawrence adding two more to her tally.
Despite being a seesawing encounter it was Saints who led in the final moments, and were on the verge of winning, until they gave away a free kick, which Remmos booted through to get the draw.
If the intensity and passion in this match is anything to go by we’re in for an exciting finals series, where Saints will again be looking to get the better of the Queenants.
And while this pairing is currently favoured to be the grand final matchup, the likes of Waratah and Nightcliff will also figure in the equation.
Saints navigate the wet
St Mary’s ability to play in the wet and difficult conditions once again gave them the early lead in a decisive NTFL match.
They took control early on against a tricky PINT side, off the back of their midfield contingent of Dylan Landt, Nate Paredes and Joel Garner, who got plenty of the ball.
Though their opposition came late, much like in Round 12 against Southern Districts, the Green Machine held on to see the match out.
It’s exactly what they needed to maintain their current trajectory of claiming a top three double chance position, or maybe even the minor premiership.
And with the rain looking as if it may be here to stay their ability to navigate these conditions, lob the ball long and play surge footy will be all the more important heading into the tail end of the season.
However, St Mary’s were not the only top five side to get an important in wet conditions with both of last year’s grand finalists, Waratah and Southern Districts, piling on the scores.
Districts were sloppy to begin with kicking just one goal from their opening nine scoring shots, but when they got their eye in there was no stopping them, and Jonathon Ross got nine.
And Waratah were potent late in the piece against Wanderers to run away with the win in the final quarter.
All were important wins, particularly on a week where top of the table Nightcliff had the week off.
Wanderers women resurgence
There’s been a marked difference in the performance of the Wanderers’ women in recent weeks to the one we saw prior to the break.
The young and inexperienced side were regularly getting beaten by 100s of points early in the year, though their effort to get out there in the heat each week has been commendable.
They’ve improved plenty in recent weeks though, kicking their first goal of the season against league leaders PINT, while they scored twice against second placed St Mary’s.
And against Waratah in the Foundation Cup they pulled off another stunner losing by just 14 points in a 4.4 (28) to 1.8 (14) match, which had they kicked straight could have turned into a win.
Part of this U-turn is down to an influx of players from down south namely from the St Kevins Old Boys, who play in the VAFA, and from Caroline Springs.
The experience of these players has not just helped the on-field performances of the Muk Muks, but will present future proofing opportunities for the side.
The wins aren’t there just yet, but if these closer run games are any sign the interstate connections will pay off in the long run for the side that has struggled this year.
And hopefully it pays off the junior and local players who have been doing the hard yards for the side all season too.
Rep footy success
The NTFL Buffaloes enjoyed resounding success winning both the men’s and women’s representative fixtures against the Essendon Bombers.
The women held on in a low scoring affair where all the goals were scored in the first quarter, where Jasmyn Hewett, Jo Miller and Jemma Iacono were among the stars.
While Jed Anderson, Nick Yarran and Nate Paredes were some of the standouts in the men’s victory over their VFL rivals, who featured Jack Peris playing his first game in red and black.
The wins continued the streak of wins for the NT since rep footy returned in 2020, while the Top End side also remain undefeated from five matches against the Dons.
Essendon did well honouring their connection with the Tiwi Bombers, playing Tiwi players in both their VFL and VFLW outfits.
Kim Kantilla was among the stars of the show in the men’s side scoring an exciting goal, while Freda Puruntatameri was a clear standout in the Essendon women’s defence.
Though questions should be asked about the date of the match, happening on a Wednesday in the middle of two NTFL rounds.
And while the side did win, and featured plenty of stars, some of the league’s best including reigning Nichols medallist Dylan Landt, Steven Motlop, Jackson Calder and Jarrod Stokes did not play.
Part of that is down to how close the league is at the top this year, with any loss potentially pushing a side out of top three contention.
In previous years the league has taken the week off to allow for the bye round, but in doing so it disrupts the Foundation Cup, and causes certain teams to have back-to-back off weeks.
It’s a tricky scenario either way, but in the end it was another big win for the NT sides, and gave a crowded TIO Stadium a real spectacle.
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Originally published as What we learned from Round 15 of the 2023-24 NTFL season
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