Live stream: Kew take on arch rivals St Kevin’s in VAFA Women’s Premier grand final rematch

Reigning premier St Kevin’s has underlined that it will again be the benchmark this season after a grand final replay demolition of Kew. Watch how it unfolded in a full replay, plus reserves.

Saints pair Sarah Cameron and Kate Stanton have been instrumental in St Kevin’s confirming they will again be the team to beat after they thumped Kew in their VAFA Women’s Premier grand final rematch.

The Saints’ intensity around the ball was evident from the outset, but they didn’t really convert that on to the scoreboard until late in the term.

Cameron was the only multiple goalkicker with three and created countless problems for the Kew defenders, as was Stanton, who kicked a major of her own.

Hannah Smith was another to stand out for St Kevin’s as they delivered a comprehensive 6.6 (42) to 1.4 (10) victory.

Kew definitely finished off better and will take plenty from that, but was never really able to get back into the game and apply scoreboard pressure.

REPLAY

St Kevin’s v Kew FC (Women’s Premier)

Watch the full replay in the window above.

St Kevin’s v Kew FC (Women’s Reserves)

In particular, Kew’s Dakota Villiva was outstanding in her comeback from a serious knee injury.

The onballer tackled fiercely all day and kicked her side’s only goal early in the final quarter.

But the game was long gone at that stage.

When Hanah Smith took a powerful overhead mark and converted from long range minutes into the third quarter, Kew was left with a seemingly improbable task.

Smith’s goal iced all the hard work done by Cameron and Stanton in the first half as they tore the Kew defence to shreds.

Stanton’s thumping set-shot goal late in the second was particularly damaging as she revved up her teammates with her celebration.

It came very quickly after Cameron wrestled free of a tackle to kick accurately when three Kew defenders went to ground.

The two late goals deflated Kew, which had managed to limit the damage despite the ball being camped in its defensive half.

Cameron helped set up a handy seven-point lead for St Kevin’s at quarter time after taking a strong mark running back with the flight before playing on and snapping truly.

Jessica Joyce joined her on the scoresheet early in the second quarter when she chimed in with a smart goal on the run.

In the reserves contest, Kew’s run and carry proved much too hot for St Kevin’s as they made it three consecutive wins to open the season.

Leading at every change, Kew held St Kevin’s goalless until the third quarter on their way to a 26-point victory.

They were physically stronger around the contest and despite St Kevin’s refusing to shirk the challenge, they simply couldn’t contain a team which had winners on every line.

The 5.7 (37) to 1.5 (11) result summed up the difference between the two teams.

St Kevin’s remains winless this season.

PREVIEW

Kew star Dakota Villiva is back and VAFA rivals are on notice.

The 2022 Women’s Premier Division league best-and-fairest missed all of last season after undergoing a knee reconstruction following an ACL tear in pre-season.

Now, after two impressive starts to the season, she will aim to play a key role in her side’s grand final rematch against St Kevin’s.

Catch all the action from the Reserves/Premier Women’s double header LIVE and EXCLUSIVE from 11.40am on Saturday on KommunityTV.

Check out the full LIVE STREAM draw below.

According to Bears coach Em Avery, who is enjoying her first season in charge, Villiva has slotted seamlessly back into the senior side.

“She’s one of the most competitive players I’ve coached,” Avery said.

“Her versatility around the footy is one thing that makes her a real weapon for us, we definitely missed her last year.

Dakota Villiva is back for Kew.

“Dak did her knee in a practice match last year and playing in another one before this season was a really big moment for her.

“We’re just glad she’s back and enjoying her footy, she’s probably going to get better as the year goes on and she gets more confidence.”

Avery stepped into the Kew senior coaching role in the summer after leading the reserves to the premiership last season.

She replaced Jess Burger, who is the head of women’s footy at Collingwood, but remains a player with the Bears.

John McDonough has remained in the role of assistant coach and Tenille Nash has stepped up into the coaching fold for the first time.

Former Port Melbourne VFLW skipper Claire Dyett has signed on as the defensive coach.

“We haven’t looked to change too much, it’s been a smooth transition,” Avery said.

“There has certainly been more responsibility in terms of planning training sessions and tweaking the game plan.”

When it came to putting her own touch on the game plan, Avery said she wanted to build an “entertaining” footy side.

“We’ve changed our attacking stratify a little bit, we want to be more aggressive through the corridor,” she said.

“Over the past couple of years we’ve traditionally been a strong defensive side and we don’t want to lose that. When you bring in new strategies you wonder if it is going to take away from your strengths.

There’s plenty of passion in this contest.

“Fortunately for us, we’ve managed to find the right balance at the moment. We don’t want to be a heavy stoppage side, which games against St Kevin’s can turn into because we’re both so strong defensively.

“I want the girls to move the ball quickly, be proud to be dangerous and play an entertaining style.”

Avery said defender Lucy Aitken and Isabelle Harding had also enjoyed strong starts to the season for her side and would play a pivotal role this weekend.

“Lucy has been an absolute brickwall in defence, setting us up behind the ball and getting us into position on transition,” she said.

“Is (Harding) has been really impressive through the middle. The club is in a good spot at the moment.

“Our reserves look strong again, which means there is a lot of depth. There have been some slight changes to the team but having little to no list turnover means there’s the connection on the field.”