Moe won the A Grade netball premiership in the Gippsland League on Saturday.

The Lions were far too strong for reigning premier Morwell, smashing the Tigers 64-30. The stage was set at Morwell Recreation Reserve, the sun was shining, the supporters were cheering and the players looked fit and firing.

That first whistle blew and the white line fever began – Morwell had the first centre pass but fumbled and lost the ball with the Lions capitalising on the Tigers’ mistake.

Moe’s court system worked brilliantly in the first quarter. Moe mid courters Macy Gardiner and Alex Moody demonstrated what perfect transition looked like, and topped it all off with brilliant feeds into coach and goal shooter Ramayer Gourley.

Moe had a great start, managing to keep the Tigers scoreless for most of the first quarter. At the first break the score was 15-2.

By halftime, the score grew out to 33-14 Moe’s way, following a clinical display from the Lions.

Morwell had no answers for the systematic game plan of the Lions. The Tigers had been chasing tail all day. With so much to make up, the team began throwing long bombs and rushing the ball down to make a quick comeback, but rolling the dice could not pay off with ball readers like Moe’s Olivia Barnett (formerly of Sale) picking off every loose Tiger’s ball.

The third quarter saw the Lions outscore the Tigers by 11 more goals, and Morwell began to contemplate the severity of the score.

If scoreboard pressure is a real phenomena, Moe applied it well, with Morwell unable to get back in the game, the Lions score continued to grow in the fourth quarter.

As the final siren rang, the crowd stormed the court as tears flowed and warm embraces were shared.

Gourley was outstanding in the win, with a strong ring presence and lethal accuracy it was no wonder why she was awarded TRFM’s player of the match and received best-on-court honours.

As the Moe faithful cheered Gourley to the microphone, she thanked Morwell for the contest.

“Thank you Morwell, you have been the real bar for the last four years and we’ve been chasing. You’re amazing – obviously not your day today but we know you’ll come back strong next year,” she said.

Holding back tears, the second-year coach thanked the club for their support in preparing her for the coaching role, and to the Lions faithful who got around their A Grade team.