Sport
5 May, 2026
Bulldogs vanquish fightful Harcourt by 54 goals
Harcourt was unable to slow Avoca’s trampling start to 2026, with the reigning premiers taking home a 54-goal victory.
Even with some promising patches from the Lions, the Bulldogs weren’t challenged in extending their lengthy unbeaten streak to 56 games, winning their first four matches of 2026 by at least 40 goals.
Both teams called up members of their B grade teams to solidify their defensive depth on Saturday. While the Lions welcomed Mercedes Gill, the Bulldogs immediately slotted Bridie Kennedy in at wing defence.
With Ella Rule providing infectious energy in the midcourt with several pass deflections, Laura Suckling forcing early turnovers and Jarrenhy Webb starting brilliantly at goal attack, Harcourt was keeping pace with Avoca early.
With the score sitting at 7-5 midway through the first quarter, the Bulldogs suddenly orchestrated a game-changing scoring spree.
Several exceptional passages of end-to-end ball movement were finished with veterans Stacey Blair and Lucy Howell finding Maddy Egan, who was expertly exploiting her height advantage with her off-ball motion, in the goal circle.
Assisted by Egan’s virtually faultless shooting accuracy, the Bulldogs scored 15 of the last 19 goals in the first quarter, building a healthy 13-goal lead at the opening break.
With Ursula van Dyk shifting into wing attack to assist her team’s midcourt engine, Morgan Howorth, the Lions regained some of their early offensive flourish in the second quarter, allowing 2025 Best and Fairest Jordan Bagley to have more of an impact.
Even with the Lions’ valiant attempts at resistance, their deficit to the Bulldogs inevitably expanded, trailing 43-19 at the conclusion of the first half.
Despite their team’s 24-goal half time advantage, Avoca defenders Caitlin Drummond and Ella Patten stayed laser-focused on stopping any Harcourt advance after the break.
The pairing conceded just four goals during the third quarter, affording more opportunities for Egan and Gina Steel to extend the margin to 44 goals.
Credit to the Lions, they were able to regroup at three-quarter time and return to being more competitive in the closing stages. Yet, the final result was already decided, as the Bulldogs recorded another impressive win.
For the fourth week running, Egan surpassed 50 goals on Saturday, ending up with 65 goals at a freakish 91.5 percent shooting percentage. Steel once again impressed for the Bulldogs, converting 23 shots.
Bagley shook off a quiet start to end on 19 goals for the Lions, developing a formidable tandem alongside Webb, who scored 15.