Rupanyup’s trophy cabinet has a long-awaited addition after the club captured its first-ever Horsham District league A Grade netball premiership in a thrilling grand final on Saturday.

The nail-biting 39-37 victory against a gallant Edenhope-Apsley was the culmination of a three-year journey for the Panthers, who reshaped their A Grade side under coach Georgia Hiscock.

Rupanyup made a surprise elimination final appearance in 2023 before last year coming painfully close to upsetting Laharum in the grand final. Now the Panthers have their prize.

Nothing came easily for Rupanyup in Saturday’s grand final, with a determined Edenhope-Apsley jumping out to an early 8-6 lead. The low-scoring first quarter was indicative of the frenetic defensive pressure applied by both sides.

Panthers Lucy Bussenschutt and Victoria Taylor clamped down on Saint goalies Dee Dee Lambert and coach Lavinia Fox, while at the other end of the court Olivia Spence and Danielle Grindlay made clear entry passes to Rupanyup’s Bianca Drum and Zanaiya Bergen a near impossibility.

Both teams’ midcourts contributed to the defensive frenzy, with Panthers Holly Ross and Ally Hiscock and Saint Hayley Campbell flying around the court to tip passes and track down loose balls. 

Bergen, the league’s leading goal shooter, was kept to only three goals in the first quarter, prompting Hiscock to swap her for 16-year-old Ilze Van Zyl in what would prove a coaching masterstroke. What Van Zyl gave up in height she made up for in agility and shooting range, forcing the Edenhope-Apsley defenders to cover more of the court.

Rupanyup took control of the game in the second quarter after a pair of early goals to Lambert, moving the ball more decisively through the midcourt and finding their goalies easy opportunities under the goalpost.

They outscored the Saints 12-6 to take a four-goal lead into half time and, after an Edenhope-Apsley run in the third quarter trimmed the margin to a single goal, re-established a five-score buffer by the final change.

The term was capped by a long-range bomb from Drum, who was allowed to take a shot from just inside the goal circle after the three-quarter-time horn following a contact infringement.

Drum’s goal ignited the crowd, and when the Panthers scored the first two goals of the last quarter to open up their largest lead of the game, all the momentum seemed to be on their side.

But just as the Saints’ hopes of a third premiership in four years seemed to be fading, the team responded, capitalising on some nervy Panthers turnovers and finding Lambert repeatedly.

Grindlay worked hard to rebound Rupanyup’s misses, while Jas McIntyre did her best to jump into passing lanes.

Twice the Saints drew within one goal and had the subsequent centre pass, but on both occasions Lambert was unable to find the bottom of the net.

Rupanyup stabilised with late goals to Drum and Van Zyl, and although the Saints responded with a final score, time ran out on them.

There was jubilation for Rupanyup at the final horn, as the team’s officials and supporters formed a large circle on court to belt out the club song with gusto.

Hiscock said her team had been determined to win not only for themselves, but the Rupanyup community.

“To know that we’ll be etched into the club’s history is amazing. We’ve worked hard and it’s been a three-year process,” she said.

“We finished third, then we finished second and now we finally get the chocolates, so we’re stoked. It’s great to see the whole community come out to support the team.”

Despite admitting the final result was ‘a bit close for comfort’, Hiscock said she trusted her players to execute when it mattered most.

“I thought once we got to that three or four-goal lead we might be able to be controlled and play the game out, but no – Edenhope being Edenhope, they just kept fighting back until the end and did a wonderful job,” she said.

“We knew that they would leave everything on the court and come out hard in that last quarter, which they did. We’ve got 10 girls on our team and 10 girls play week in and week out. This was a real team win.”

On a hot day it was Van Zyl – the youngest player in the game – who kept the coolest head, scoring 24 goals to win the best-on-court medal.

“It was a whole-team effort. Every single one of them should’ve gotten the medal because I wouldn’t be able to play my best if it wasn’t for everyone else,” Van Zyl said.

“I knew that they had my back and that if I made a mistake they’d help me get it back.”

Hiscock paid tribute to Van Zyl as well as Bergen, the player she replaced on court.

“Ilze is 16 years old and she went out there and shot the lights out. She’s cool, calm and collected, and nothing fazes her, which is exactly what we needed,” Hiscock said.

“It was just about match-ups and what was going on at the time. I said to Zanaiya after the game that we wouldn’t be in the grand final if it wasn’t for her semi-final performance against Kalkee. That’s the benefit of having 10 strong players – no matter what happens on the day we’ve got an answer, and that happened to be our answer today.”

A disappointed Fox said she could not be more proud of her players after their fourth-quarter efforts nearly stole a remarkable win.

“Our goal going into the last quarter was to leave no stone unturned and to give it our all,” she said.

“We did have our opportunities, but Rupanyup, credit to them, made the most of it and they were accurate under that post. It was disappointing for us, but it’s also exciting to see for Rupanyup who haven’t won that premiership before.”

Fox said after a successful season in which the Saints incorporated several new players, the team was keen to return for another premiership tilt in 2026.

“I have the club to thank for trusting me with the head coaching role this year. I was fortunate to be able to bring some new players to the team in Dee Dee and Olivia, and then Hailey coming back as well really added some depth,” she said.

“Then you see the potential we had within the club – Danielle Grindlay was playing C Grade last year and for Jas McIntyre that’s also her first grand final. I think most of us are thinking of next year already. We want to keep the group together and go again next year.”

Other grades

Natimuk United’s undefeated season had a fitting ending in the B Grade grand final, with the Rams capturing a premiership on their home court by defeating Noradjuha-Quantong 39-30.

The C Grade grand final also featured the Bombers, who completed a magical run from fourth place on the ladder to edge out Kalkee in a 39-37 thriller.

The C Reserve grand final was one to remember for Laharum, which defeated Noradjuha-Quantong 52-33 to seal a dominant season.

The closest grand finals were both between Natimuk United and Kalkee, with the Rams’ 13-and-under side kicking off the day with a 51-50 win, while the Kees’ 17-and-under squad returned the favour in a 41-40 result.

Laharum took out the 15-and-under grand final 41-29 against Pimpinio.

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