Bull Sharks back to the drawing board in grand final bid

July 25, 2022

By Grace Knight

The senior women’s Bull Sharks suffered an unfortunate 48-9 loss to reigning Prime Minister the University of Queensland on Saturday in the QAFLW qualifier final.

With home advantage, the Lions took to the field with confidence as the Bull Sharks fought hard to stay in the game, showing their determination to the last second.

HOW IT DISCOVERED

The Bull Sharks scored one goal in the first quarter of the game before making some simple mistakes that allowed the Lions to capitalize on their mistakes.

The Lions ripped open the game in the second quarter, leaving the Bull Sharks struggling to pull back the margin.

Despite being three goals behind at halftime, the Bull Sharks evened the game with a strong midfield working hard to turn the games around.

Even with the footy consistently finding the Bull Sharks’ 50m line, the team struggled to convert their efforts into points.

The Bull Sharks put up a daring battle against the holders of the 2021 premiership, but a series of missed goals ultimately cost them the game.

WHO SHOT

The Bull Sharks backline worked tirelessly throughout the game to thwart the Lions’ disdainful machine.

Adapting well from her usual ruck position, Jasmine Davidson took a number of critical points and tackles in the pivotal role as a halfback, helping the Bull Shark’s campaign.

Reserve Isla Champion took the big stage with an impressive display of her dexterity and ability to work well in an unfamiliar team.

WHAT IT MEANS

Despite the heavy loss in the semi-finals, the Bull Sharks will have the chance to redeem themselves in the preliminary final against the Southport Sharks next week.

With two of the Bull Sharks’ key players injured, the weekend’s game gave the team a much-needed chance to adjust to their new positions. They now have an extra week to train and develop combinations to bring their best performance to next weekend’s game.

The Bull Sharks should go into their next game with confidence as they had success against Southport at the start of the month.

WHAT THEY SAID

Head coach Luke Mansbridge was impressed by his players’ efforts to stay in the game.

“During the game it looked like a draw. We just gave away some easy ones at the start and that put a dent in their confidence,” said Mansbridge.

“Nevertheless, they played really well and never gave up. It’s just a shame we couldn’t convert that into a bigger score.”

He is now excited for next week’s game when he will have new reserve players in his arsenal.

“Some of the reserve players we brought forward this week really impressed me, so it’s good to know a little more about them and how they can work in our repertoire,” he said.

Mansbridge said the team needs to be confident all week, knowing that they have worked hard all season and the result will come naturally.

“As we go into the qualifying round we will definitely have to dust off and regain our conviction to move forward, but we know we are on a good side, we just need to stay positive through the week in training, and get back out next weekend to blow out all the guns.”

IN OTHER GAMES

The women’s reserves suffered an unfortunate loss to the Southport Sharks, meaning they too face a knockout final next week.

The senior men’s team had a much-needed farewell this weekend to reset as they head into round 17 next weekend and hold on strongly to their second-place finish on the ladder.

The men’s reserves also parted ways after their convincing win last week in preparation for the business end of the season.