Just as the Horsham District A Grade netball hierarchy appeared set Kalkee has upended it, defeating ladder leader Laharum by four goals at the weekend.

The Demons had seemingly established themselves as raging premiership favourites after nine rounds, going a perfect 9-0 to top the ladder by 10 premiership points.

But the Kees have long been renowned as a netball powerhouse, and showed why in Saturday’s 40-36 victory.

Kalkee began the game strongly, grabbing an 11-7 lead at quarter time.

Coach Millie McCrae said it was crucial for her side to set an early tone.

“We knew it was going to be a challenge, but you’ve got nothing to lose going into a game like that,” she said.

“The girls were aware it was going to be a tough one, but we started really strong, which probably set us up a bit.”

McCrae said Kalkee knew limiting arguably the league’s most potent forward setup would be key.

“They use one [Maddie] Iredell in goal attack a lot and she feeds the ball in beautifully. I suppose being a goalie herself she knows pretty well where they want the ball,” she said.

“I think making Ilze [Van Zyl] work a little bit harder out of the ring helped us.

“I couldn’t fault our defence. They worked hard in there to shut it down, and Lotus [Martin] with her strength and her rebounds played a big role in that.”

Martin was given a match-up on Laharum goal shooter Caitlin Jones-Story, while Emily Polack helped keep league-leading scorer Van Zyl to a season-low 18 goals.

At the other end of the court Isobelle Schorback played her best game of the season, scoring 30 times for the Kees.

While the visitors enjoyed a four-goal lead at each of the quarter and half-time breaks, Laharum stormed back with a dominant 12-5 third term to retake the lead at the final change.

McCrae said her team responded in the best possible way in the last quarter.

“We definitely lost our momentum a bit in that third quarter and they jumped on that,” she said.

“We’ve had a few games where we’ve been down and we’ve had to claw our way back in the last quarter, so we knew we could do it.

“We’ve been working on that – keeping our composure in those high-pressure moments in games – which I think showed throughout the game, but especially in that last quarter.

“The girls stayed pretty positive in that last quarter and kept their composure, which was really good.”

Kalkee’s next challenge will be second-placed Edenhope-Apsley, which demolished Taylors Lake 87-26 on Saturday as goalie Dee Dee Lambert scored 53 times.

McCrae said her side would take nothing for granted despite its confidence-boosting win against the Demons.

“We’ll go in with a little bit more confidence, but we know it’s going to be another strong challenge,” she said.

“Edenhope-Apsley have some beautiful netballers in their side, so we love playing them. 

“They play a really clean game, so it will be challenging but an exciting one to look forward to.”

Other games on Saturday included a 56-45 win for Pimpinio against Natimuk United, led by a 30-goal outing from Tahlia Thompson and strong defence from Ruby Williams, with captain Bethany Sudholz the top player for the Rams.

Harrow-Balmoral had a comfortable 57-27 victory against Rupanyup, with Rebecca Francis giving the team midcourt drive and Mia Rees shooting confidently, while co-captain Molly Fagan stood up for the Panthers.

Kaniva-Leeor United was another big winner, dispatching Swifts 55-32 thanks to strong defending from Ellen Bennett to remain in fifth place.

In addition to this weekend’s blockbuster between the Kees and Saints at Kalkee, other matches will feature Taylors Lake against Natimuk United at Dock Lake Reserve, Pimpinio hosting Harrow-Balmoral, Swifts on the road against Rupanyup and Kaniva-Leeor United hosting Noradjua-Quantong. 

The entire June 24, 2026 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!

The entire June 24, 2026 edition of AgLife is available online. READ IT HERE!