Last Sunday The Bombala High Heelers made it two premierships from the last three grand finals when they defeated Bega Chicks in the Group 16 league tag grand final.
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A strong contingent of supporters made their way down the mountain to cheer the girls on. The opening 10 minutes of the encounter saw Bega camped in Bombala's half and it was only desperate Bombala defence that saw their try line intact.
Just when it was needed captain Patrice Clear made a long searching run that saw Bombala on the attack. After a few settling runs the ball was passed out wide where Abbey Kimber threw a well-timed pass to Georgie Clark who flew down the side line before stepping the cover defence to score adjacent to the posts. With a successful conversion the girls led 6-0 after 15 minutes.
The remainder of the half was to and fro although Bombala were starting to make inroads into the Bega defence with strong runs from Patrice, Georgie and Karter Hampshire. Despite the best efforts of the opposition Bombala were able to keep their brick wall defence. This was best exemplified by Abbey when Bega chipped over the top in an attempt to break through when she dived to tag her opposite number to save the day.
The second half was only a couple of minutes old when Bega found a chink in the armour to score through the middle of the ruck to lock the score up at 6-6. The Blues crowd really started to find their voice and the team lifted in response both in attack and defence.
A close call was defused by Patrice when the ball was batted over the dead ball line just as Bega were about to score. A contentious decision with 16 minutes left saw Lucy Sellers given 10 minutes for a professional foul.
The heart of the mountain girls really came to the fore as they continually turned up for one another to repel attack after attack. Bombala had being kicking early for the entire game in an attempt to play Bega in their own territory. It was a tactic that was to eventually prove decisive when a kick downfield with two minutes left saw the Bega winger knock and Bombala given possession.
Some lovely play saw Sam Stewart stopped a couple of metres out. The girls kept their cool and with time ticking away they passed the backline where it went through six sets of hands before eventually making its way to Heidi Kimber who darted over in the corner to seal the victory with Bombala winning 10-6.
While it would have been difficult for the judges in such a wonderful team performance the player of the match was Patrice Clear who justified her joint best and fairest award in an excellent display.
Congratulations must go to the Bega Chicks who were the benchmark team of the competition and who fought to the end.
The supporters were pivotal in the team's success throughout the season providing much needed encouragement at both home and away games.
The support staff who week in week out were there to get the best out of the team.
Coach Brian Morgan should be congratulated for being able to gel the girls into a formidable outfit throughout the entire season. The committee, many of whom are players, for their efforts behind the scenes that makes having a club possible.
Lastly to every single member of the league tag squad on being premiers for 2019. Bombala is justifiably proud of you. Played good. Played strong.