Nikita Hanson looks to fire off a pass. Photos: Locked In Media.
Benalla may not have caused an upset against reigning premier Shepparton at the weekend, but the Saints lost no admirers as they continue their gradual development this season.
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The young Saints squad, which lost experienced A grade figures over the off-season, has been up against it for much of the campaign thus far, and while the Saints suffered a 21-56 defeat against the 2025 premier Shepparton on Saturday at Benalla Showgrounds, they fought valiantly to show improvement after half time despite the scoreline.
Heidi O’Halloran made the most of her opportunities under the ring at the weekend.
A slow start saw Benalla head into the first break down 5-14 as the Bears came out swinging, and while the second quarter may have yielded only three goals for the Saints, they did manage to slow Shepparton’s scoring rate too, allowing only 12 goals for the term to go into the half-time huddle trailing 8-26.
The second half saw the Saints continue to dig in, the final quarter being their best of the afternoon, scoring seven goals while restricting the Bears to 12.
Eliza Sammon sends a pass across the court.
At first glance the result might not seem brilliant, but there are plenty of small wins to be celebrated, with the Saints’ performance comparative to, if not better than, other sides that have played against the Bears this season.
The reigning premier scored more than the 56 goals the Saints held them to against three other sides this season, including Shepparton Swans, who sit on the cusp of the top six.
Alex Davies scans for a teammate.
While there is no doubt plenty of improvement still to be made, there are signs of development coming out of Benalla, and a chance to show it against a side in a similar ladder position following this weekend’s bye.
The Saints will host Rochester (1-6) in round eight at Benalla Showgrounds on May 30, with the 10th-placed Tigers, who sit just one spot above Benalla on the ladder, providing a good gauge for the Saints.
Across the grades in round seven, the B grade Saints went down 28-64 against the third-placed Bears, while the B Reserve side made it consecutive victories for the first time this season, defeating Shepparton 43-31 to move up into sixth spot, a game clear of Echuca in seventh.
In the juniors, Benalla’s under-17s went down 65-26 against the undefeated Bears, while the under-15s fell 18-42.
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