The South Warrnambool rooms were rocking on Sunday afternoon after its under 18 female football team made it a three-peat of Western Victoria Female Football league premierships.
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The mighty Roosters prevailed yet again, capping off a brilliant year with an 8.6 (54) to 3.2 (20) grand final win against Cavendish at Mortlake's DC Farran Oval.
With almost a dozen of their side finishing their junior careers on the day, Roosters mentor Ryan Jones told The Standard it was a memorable day for the club.
"The girls are absolutely pumped, they had the music pumping after the game, dancing around and some of the parents got involved as well, it was awesome," he said.
"These girls brought a good vibe all the way through. Whether it was in the pre-game, post game, it was fantastic.
"They've got a lot of energy and it just rubs off."
Jones said there was something unique about the club's under 18 program which continued to deliver on and off the field with huge numbers and more importantly silverware in the cabinets.
"From a coaching point of view each year they've always been so coachable and easy to help along," he said.
"Each year as girls go through the system through age they all leave something behind of themselves.
"The girls that come in and fill that space left behind - whether you're a first year player or in your third year it rubs off on everyone.
"Our girls carry that over the line."
The Roosters mentor described the win as a strong "whole team effort" where everyone pitched in.
"We helped our cause by holding them to one goal against the wind early which was a good positive sign for us," he said.
"All year it has been a team balance, with everyone doing their role. Everyone had an impact and took their moment when it came.
"It's fantastic to see. It's a huge team effort and their work rate at training and adaptability during games, it's paid off."
GWV Rebels players Maggie Johnstone and Olivia Wolter both received best-on-ground medals, leading from the front, with the latter slotting three of the team's eight goals.
Jones said the commanding presence of the duo lifted the team as a collective.
"Coming back from Rebels to play locally is an adjustment you need to make. You've got a target on your back," he said.
"Whether it be our girls or the Cavendish girls coming back from the Rebels, I thought they took a lot of physical pressure, when they got the ball they were targetted in a way.
"We've got some great young players in this team, but adding that polish certainly helps. They had a massive impact and brought everyone into the game."
The Roosters mentor said he sees a strong future at senior level for those departing but believed the future of the under 18s team was exciting.
"There was about 10 girls in their last under 18s game," he said.
"But we also had 13 new players on board this year and hopefully we can pull similar numbers across next year."
South Warrnambool was unable to get the job done in the senior grand final later in the day, falling just short against Horsham Demons, 3.3 (21) to 1.10 (16).
In what was a close contest all day the Roosters - despite registering five more scoring shots - were unable to find the winning goal.
Nick Creely
Sports reporter with The Standard
Sports reporter with The Standard
