Sport
26 August, 2025
Talbot to progress at Newstead’s expense
For the second straight season, Talbot will meet the Maryborough Giants in the semi-final after the Hawks took care of a spirited Newstead by 22 goals.
After having the bye in the last round of the home and away season, the Hawks were eager to make their mark, getting off to a strong start before dominating the second quarter 17-6 to set the stage for their third finals win in two years.
Talbot player-coach Eleisha Phelps said she was pleased with her team’s performance, as they now have their sights on Saturday’s clash with the Giants.
“It was a tough game despite the score, but we pushed it out each quarter and everyone stood up on the court,” she said.
“Great job to Newstead, they put up a good fight, we got a good start, so that’s what we need next week and then for them to follow us instead of us chasing.”
Elenoa Costello played a massive role in the Hawks’ start, making the most of some early transition chances by scoring an impressive 17 goals from 18 first-quarter attempts to lead her team to a nine-goal lead at the first change.
Phelps also had an impressive opening 15 minutes, capped off by going three for three from the field.
Newstead shooting duo Tayla Gale and Brianna Jury did their best to keep pace with their counterparts, combining to score 11 goals with Gale leading with seven.
While it was their offence which led the way in the first quarter, Talbot’s defence took over the match in the second term.
The introduction of Abbey Klemm off the bench to wing defence for Melissa Scott gave the Hawks an injection of energy in the midcourt, while Jess White and Jane Costello did a masterful job marshalling the goal circle, particularly with their defensive rebounding.
It resulted in Talbot ballooning their lead to 20 goals at half time.
Elenoa Costello remained virtually unstoppable in the second period, netting 12 of 13 attempts while Phelps remained perfect with five successful shots.
Gale and Jury had some shooting struggles thanks to White and Jane Costello, with Jury finishing the term with five while Gale added one.
Needing to overcome a sizable deficit in the second half with their season at stake, Newstead rose to the challenge and brought the fight to Talbot in the third quarter.
While Chelsey Williams and Zoe Douglass had more luck slowing the Hawks’ advances, the midcourt duo of Jessica Currie and Katie Tong helped Newstead up their scoring rate to 18 goals in the period.
Despite the Steaders comeback, the Hawks remained in the prime position with a 14-goal advantage heading into three-quarter time.
Elenoa Costello cooled slightly to begin the second half, yet still managed to score 11 goals while Phelps sank one.
Jury and Gale both finished the third term with nine goals to keep the door slightly open for Newstead.
However, the Hawks slammed the door on the Steaders thanks to consistent turnovers at the start of the fourth quarter and never looked back, finishing another finals triumph with an exclamation point.
With Elenoa Costello on the bench in the last term, finishing with a game-high 40 goals. Phelps had more chances to showcase her shooting talent by scoring 14 goals to end the game with 23 goals with a stunning 92 percent conversion rate.
Shianne Milera took Elenoa Costello’s place in the final quarter, netting two.
After going a perfect five for five in the last 15 minutes, Jury ended with 23 goals, closely followed by Gale’s 20 successful shots.
According to Phelps, Talbot’s defence was the catalyst for them to get on an early roll.
“The turnovers we got defensively and then transitioning down into attack were really strong and open, we gave ourselves space to be able to get it down quickly,” she said.
“Once we did get it down quickly, we were able to score off it straight away.
“We are strong defensively, the likes of White and Jane Costello and then bringing in the wing defence role with Tina Wardlaw, Klemm and Scott to back them up was really good.”
