It was an unusually early start this Saturday. The bounce took place before 12pm for both games and seemingly before the sun started working. A very chilly day with an arctic breeze had the sideline dressing gowns working overtime, but the Renegades certainly knew how to bring the heat. After a week of rain, the ground conditions were sloppy, with the midfield looking more like a stockyard than a footy oval.

Ivanhoe narrowly defeated the Renegades by two points in Round 5, in another of the season’s nail-biting finishes, so there were debts to be paid this round. The Captain’s instructions were to hit them hard early and set the pace for the game, and Grace Kendall was the first to step up, taking a great mark inside the fifty. Backing herself in the short field, she kicked a long-range set shot that sailed through the sticks and carved out an early lead in the first quarter.

Playing against a strong wind, the backline had their work cut out in the second and fourth quarters. The team welcomed back Samara “Bumper” Griffin, who showed no signs of rust after missing a few games. With several seasons together in defence, it is incredible to watch the clockwork style of Andie, Jose and Samara moving with each other, anticipating and reading each other like a book.

Some supreme ruck work from Sasha Dougherty showed superb control over the tap, giving the Renegades a significant advantage at every ball up. Tags is getting her stamps up on her passport, getting herself absolutely everywhere across the field to impact the game. Erin’s star performance last week defending the ball over the line and her long steady kick snagged her a place in the forward line this week, with a cameo from utility player Ange “Snowy” Snowden. But if we want to talk performance, we can’t go past the amazing theatrics of Gem Costello. Gem opted for a bicycle kick on the boundary in a desperate attempt to keep the ball in play in a peak scoring opportunity. A beautiful link-up, from Kingi to Mon, who lobbed the ball into the hot spot where Teabag swept in and soccered the ball across the line – with centimetres to spare!

Two goals up by the fourth quarter, the Renegades had taken the wind out of Ivanhoe’s sails, and they weren’t able to catch up. Another victory for the prems and all wrapped up before 3pm!