Thank you to Lee Group for their sponsorship and support of this round! After a long wait, the club was finally able to celebrate reconciliation week and wear its Indigenous jumpers. The jumpers were designed by the talented artist Uncle Les Stanley and stood out beautifully during the game.

Prematch acknowledgment to country and traditional dance was performed by Nartarsha Bamblett, Queen Acknowledgements. It was a fantastic way to open the round, and we thank Natarsha.

Nartarsha Bamblett, Queen Acknowledgements. Photo credit: Mark Phillips of Brunswick Voice.

Conditions were football perfect on Saturday afternoon; no wind, no rain, no worries. Parkdale Vultures had gotten the better of the Renegades in round two on their home turf, but round 8 was a home game, and the Renegades were ready to go. Tahlia Hayes and Sasha Dougherty celebrated their milestone 50th games alongside each other and were presented with two amazing banners to run through to kick the game off. Congratulations to both players.

The first quarter set the tone; this would be a well-matched game. Most of the ball was fought in the midfield, and stoppages were plentiful as both teams struggled to wrestle the ball out. The Vultures looked a little rattled in the first quarter, not expecting the Renegades to be matching them in goals or contested footy. Ange Snowy Snowden kicked a stunning goal from the pocket to put the Renegades on the board.

The long-awaited debut from Lara Sinclair was definitely worth the wait. Her courage when she ran back with eyes only for the ball is everything you want to see from a player; we look forward to seeing her develop in the second half of the season. Tahlia Hayes was also taking confidence-boosting marks backing into the flight of a pack on more than one occasion; their season intercept mark statistics are climbing in each round. As always, the backline held position and consistently knocked attempt after attempt away from the Vultures. Josie Brown marked her authority in contested packs, and the courage paid off numerous times. The Brunswick backline worked together, not dropping the intensity over the four quarters. The scoreboard reflected this, keeping Parkdale goalless in the third and fourth quarters.

Any questions about whether Brunswick would be able to keep up the pressure were answered when Kingi slotted a goal from a free kick, giving the Renegades a morale boost in the fourth term. Hard work from midfielders and wingers Grace Kendall, House, Shelley Lampard and Lauren Palombi kept the Renegades in the game right up until the final minutes. And we can’t go past mentioning Wallis’ senior debut; her timing in the ruck is absolute perfection!

Monica Gray worked her magic with marking and chasing down opponents with ease, and the Renegades took their turn of not quite making the most of their forward 50 entries, with a quick defensive backline provided by the Vultures. The Renegades had plenty of top performers in round 8, and though it was a loss on the scoreboard, it was a minor one, and the mood was upbeat and one of pride. An 8-point loss in round 8, compared to a 76-point loss in round 2, is a massive win in our books.