Denmark-Walpole chasing maiden GSFLW premiership in home ground grand final showdown with Railways

Railways will be aiming to end their run of grand final losses in recent years as they face off against Denmark-Walpole for the Great Southern Football League Women’s premiership cup on Friday night. Both sides are chasing their first GSFLW title since the competition was established in 2018. The Tigers have been the team to beat this year, finishing on top of the ladder and only losing one game to Royals in round three. The Magpies are set to take centre stage for the first time in their history, fresh from a gruelling victory against last year’s premiers the Lions in last Friday’s preliminary final. Buoyed by the fact the decider will be in front of their home fans at McLean Park, Magpies player Erika Tharratt said her side were hopeful of pulling off an upset. “I think we’re going in there pretty fresh, hoping that the support around us and being on the home ground will give us the extra push,” she said. “I think it will be quite a fierce game which is a positive. They always give us a pretty tough go and we come off battered and bruised, but that’s part of the fun.” Tigers midfielder Tiarna Delli-Benedetti said she was excited to be facing off against the in-form Magpies for the chance to win a premiership. “I think the girls are really excited to play against Denmark — they’re quite underrated and we’re always on our toes when we play them,” Delli-Benedetti said. “They are really strong across the centre, and I think they play really well in all areas of the ground.” The Tigers have come out on top in both fixtures between the two sides this season, winning by 14 points in round four and 29 points in round nine. From their winning preliminary final team, the Tigers will lose Katelyn Jose to injury, while the Magpies are expecting to go in unchanged. Magpies coach Glen Burton said both teams would hopefully be at full strength and put on a great spectacle. “They are both teams that go hard at the ball but also hold each other in high respect,” he said. “There aren’t any outs at this stage but you wouldn’t know for certain until the day actually comes.” Tigers coach Kim Arundel is looking forward to the contest and hoped the fixture would draw a solid crowd. “We’re looking forward to it and are hoping as many people will get down to watch it from Albany and Denmark, it will be great.” he said. The grand final will start at 6.30pm at McLean Park on Friday.