Geelong Cougars defeat 23 & U minor premier North East Blaze, 53-52, in VNL semi-final

Stunning scenes have seen Geelong Cougars come from the clouds to be the first 23 & U side through to this year’s VNL final over a highly fancied opponent. WATCH THE REPLAY.

Geelong Cougars are through to their first VNL 23-and-under grand final, after holding off minor premiers North East Blaze in dramatic scenes on Wednesday night.

The young Cougars clinched the 53-52 victory over the flag favourites in the final seconds, after Blaze valiantly fought back from a 10-goal half time deficit.

With scores level 52-all with 60 seconds left, and Blaze boasting the centre pass, it was Geelong wing defender Maddie Mickovski who soon came up with the crucial stop to send it back down into the Cougars’ attack.

There, it was left to 16-year-old goal attack Indi O’Connor, who cleverly let the feed in dribble closer to goal, to then sink the matchwinner with five seconds on the clock.

“They’re all heart … this group is pretty special,” Cougars’ 23 & U coach Mel Savage said post-win.

Indi O’Connor sunk the final two goals against North East Blaze to see Geelong Cougars through to a grand final. Picture: Michael Barker/Netball Victoria

It was just the Blaze’s second loss the season after a losing grand final appearance in 2024, as the Cougars defied their fifth-place (11-7) seeding to be the first team through to this year’s decider.

With the Blaze boasting a similar squad to last year’s grand final team – intent on avenging that loss this season — it was a younger and newer-look Cougars who came up clutch as they appear to “peak” at the right time of year with wins in five of their last six matches.

For Savage and Cougars’ head coach Gerard Murphy, they were confident in the “exceptional talent” they had in their ranks.

But did they think they’d make to the grand final this year?

“You kind of wish you do, but we thought if we could keep this group together for a couple years, anything is possible,” Savage said.

“To be there this year is just icing on the cake.”

Geelong Cougars' 23 & Us co-captain Mimi Lockwood leaps for the ball in Wednesday’s semi-final win over North East Blaze. Picture: Michael Barker/Netball Victoria

Armed with the confidence of a double chance after last week’s strong elimination final win over the higher-ranked Bendigo, Savage saw her squad play without fear against the Blaze – the Cougars racing out to a five-goal quarter time lead, and 10 by half time.

“We put ourselves in such a wonderful position at the start of the game,” Savage said.

“That was the key for us … we transitioned beautifully in defence and we were really calm and positive in our attack end.”

But knowing the experienced Blaze would keep at them – they drew the margin back within three by the final break and hit the lead with two minutes to go – the Cougars’ composure to eventually flip the game back on its head belied their younger years, as Eliza Dunnell (39 goals) and O’Connor (14) converted strongly in goals.

“We had to make sure every little moment we got an intercept or turnover that we scored … we did that really well,” Savage said.

“The composure of such a young group, to withstand everything that was thrown at them in the end, we were really, really proud.”

Savage gave major plaudits to her midcourt, who were one rotation down with Zoey Shaw (ankle) sidelined but dug deep in the final stages of the match with their “gut running”.

Meanwhile, Mickovski drew huge praise for her four quarter performance and matchwinning performance in wing defence, Savage labelling it the best game she’d seen from the midcourter, who sat out last season with a shoulder injury.

• Geelong Cougars face the winner of next week’s preliminary finalists North East Blaze or Melbourne University Lightning – with the grand final scheduled for Wednesday, August 13 from 6.50pm on Melbourne’s State Netball Centre’s showcourt.

Originally published as Geelong Cougars defeat 23 & U minor premier North East Blaze, 53-52, in VNL semi-final