Cats put Bulldogs on leash

Best: Jqc Holmes, Jack Keys, Matthew Tanner, James Tanner, Charlie Beattie, Jayke Nicholson

The Rutherglen Cats came away with a rare win against the Bulldogs at Thurgoona on Saturday.

Getting off to a quick start with a five-goal opening quarter the Cats were able to continue on with their momentum throughout the game and hold off a strong finishing Bulldog outfit to claim the much-needed victory.

The Cats' cause was helped early in the contest when veteran defender Daniel Kannenberg received a red card and was reported for a crude bump on vice-captain Jarryd Hatton.

Hatton was later diagnosed with concussion and will now be forced to miss at least a fortnight under concussion protocols.

Charlie Beattie starred with four goals and Jac Holmes was influential in the ruck, while Jack Keys provided drive on the wing and Matthew Tanner was outstanding through the midfield.

Rutherglen has now moved into the top five after what was regarded as its best win of the season defeating Thurgoona by 29 points in a crucial clash between two finals hopefuls.

This keeps the Cats’ top five hopes alive for the season after missing the finals and finishing sixth last year with a 10-7-1 record.

The Cats will now look forward to this Saturday’s home match against Beechworth, with the addition of Brownlow medallist Tom Mitchell in the Cats’ senior ranks – don’t miss all the fun and entertainment of the day!

Awards: The Convent Brewery – Jac Holmes, Rutherglen Pizza – Jack Keys, Venetta & Gav Award – James Tanner.

Reserves

Cats 10.10.70 def by Bulldogs 11.9.75

Goals: A Williams 5; R Beattie 2; J Bowering, J Reid, L Hill 1

Best: Lenny Hill, Lincoln Barnes, Ben Ratcliffe, Daniel Ryland, Bailey Nichol, Angus Williams.

Under 17s

Cats 4.0.24 def by Bulldogs 17.14.116

Goals: R Barkley 2; H Chandler, B McInnes 1

Best: Arthur Morris, Flynn Verhulst, Bryce Maloney, Jax Ramsey, Harry Chandler, Nate Kuschert

The Rutherglen Cats Under 17s faced a formidable challenge as they went up against the undefeated Thurgoona Bulldogs at Thurgoona.

Coming into the match, Thurgoona had established themselves as the benchmark for the competition, and they demonstrated this dominance right from the start.

In the opening quarter, Thurgoona showcased their strength, quickly building a 23-point lead while keeping Rutherglen scoreless.

Jax Ramsay, playing in the ruck, fought valiantly with Flynn Verhulst, Bryce Moloney and Logan Morley in the midfield, but found it difficult to gain an advantage against Thurgoona's efficient midfield.

The Rutherglen backline was under relentless pressure, and despite the commendable efforts of Arthur Morris, Nate Kuschert, Jack Chandler, Tyler Yeoman and Lucas Zani the team struggled to contain their opponents.

As the second term unfolded, Thurgoona intensified their assault, and by halftime, they had extended their lead to an overwhelming 73 points.

Rutherglen, however, showed signs of resilience in the second half.

They managed to find the scoreboard, scoring four goals through the efforts of Ryan Barkley, who netted two, along with contributions from Brayden McInnes and Harry Chandler.

Despite this improvement, Thurgoona's overall strength proved too much for Rutherglen to overcome.

The final margin was 92 points.

Looking ahead, Rutherglen will need to regroup and reassess their strategies as they prepare for their next match against Beechworth, who currently sit just above them on the ladder.

Fans are encouraged to come out and support the team, as they enjoy a special family day at Barkly Park with Brownlow Medallist Tom Mitchell joining the Cats Senior side.

Awards: Arthur Morris – J & M Steel Erection, Flynn Verhulst - Rutherglen Golf Club, Bryce Moloney – Rutherglen Pizza.

Under 14s

Cats 11.4.70 def Bulldogs 4.4.28

Goals: C Johnson 5; M Smith 3; N Cracknell 2; P Colman 1

Best: Noah Cracknell, Zac Macumber, Patrick Colman, Michael Smith, Tyler Collis, Codie Johnson

This week the Cats travelled to Thurgoona to take on the undefeated Bulldogs.

the Cats were on fire early kicking the first goal of the game within the first 30 seconds, thanks to some great ruck work from Rio Glenn well supported by Noah Cracknell, Pat Colman and Cody J Wood.

Cody O’Donoghue kicked the second goal of the game with the young Cats finishing the quarter with 3 goals and well on top.

The second quarter would see a fired-up Thurgoona lift their intensity and throw everything at the young Cats, but to their credit they were able to weather the storm in a goalless quarter from both sides.

The third quarter would see the Cats come out and kick 5 goals straight to the Bulldogs zero, which was a great team effort from the Cats, taking control of the game and running out comfortable winners against a quality opponent.

Well done Cats!

Under 12s

Cats 14 def by Bulldogs 59

Awards: North East Marine – Wil M, Lawler Transport – Lachie W, Verhulst Family – Jack F, Coaches Award – Declan, Brown Family Award – Austin.

Rutherglen Netball

A Grade

Cats 17 def by Bulldogs 66

Awards: RFNC $100 cash - Pia Taylor, Adroit Insurance $25- Georgie Upton, Coaches Award $50- Ally Halton .

A tough game this week with the team going down 66–17 against a strong opposition who outplayed the Cats overall.

Their defence of Pia and Rach worked tirelessly as always, doing an amazing job against some very talented shooters.

Georgie in GS gave it her all, really listening and working hard to implement plays and movement in the ring.

A big highlight was having Ally back for her first game since the arrival of Bub — she made an immediate impact, and it was fantastic to see her back on court.

B Grade

Cats 20 def by Bulldogs 76

Another big task this week against Thurgoona who are a much faster team.

They continue to work through different player combinations to find their strongest options in a new-look side.

A big thankyou to Mel who stepped up from C grade, and Faith from under 17s who both filled in on the day.

C Grade

Cats 28 def by Bulldogs 51

Awards: Lucy Brown - RFNC $60 cash, Tahlia Morley - The Wax Trade.

Although the team didn’t come away with the win, the players put in an amazing performance from start to finish against one of the top sides.

Lucy played strongly in C, working tirelessly through the middle of the court and helping move the ball smoothly between attack and defence.

Tahlia was excellent in defence, applying constant pressure and making important turnovers that kept the team in the contest.

Thanks to Shylah from U15’s for stepping up for her first game in senior netball, playing alongside her Mum for the first time.

Under 17s

Cats 26 def by Bulldogs 52

Awards: Holly O’Donoghue - J + M Steel Erection $10, Molly Colman - Hadar Homes Hot Shot $10.

Tough day for the team this week, though they did have some strong patches of play.

Holly in GS held strong and was very strategic with her positioning.

Molly in WD held her own on a physical attacker.

They look ahead to next week for another home game with lots of confidence after playing a few of the top teams in a row now and showing improvement.

Under 15s

Cats 19 def by Bulldogs 46

Awards: RFNC Award - Leah Ellis, Hadar Homes Hotshot Award - Flick Watson, The Spark Award - Jessica Peuton.

Despite a tough game against Thurgoona, our U15 netballers continue to take positive steps forward each week and showed great determination throughout the match.

Thurgoona proved too strong on the day, but there were plenty of encouraging signs from the team.

This week they focused on driving into space and improving their passing, and it was fantastic to see the players putting those skills into practice.

There were some excellent passages of play down the court, along with strong defensive pressure that kept the intensity high.

A great effort from all players.

Keep up the hard work at training and it will all come together. Well done, team!

Under 13s

Cats 10 def by Bulldogs 45

Under 13 Reserves

Awards: Polly Simpson, Ody Flannery, Poppy Ellery - Daisy Cow Soaps Rutherglen.

After a slow start, the girls started playing to their potential with some great passages of play.

With some more hard work at training this team are definitely improving.

Under 11s

Awards: Club Corowa Mini Golf - Tiahn Heard, Hadar Homes Hot Shot - Norah Flannery, Field Family award - Emma Walsh.

Some great passages of play this week by the girls against a good Thurgoona team.