"That was... epic."
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Those were the words of PFNLW's South Mandurah Falcons coach Solomon Daw after the Falcons soared to a thrilling victory against the Pinjarra Tigers, taking out the 2021 premiership.
The evening began with Falcons and Tigers fans filtering into David Grays arena donning their team colours - the energy palpable.
South Mandurah came out of the gate strong in the first quarter and by halftime they had managed to take the lead - but defence from the Tigers was strong.
The Tigers held firm and didn't let that 12-7 gap increase, intercepting and tackling their way to a manageable five points to make up.
Chaos struck in the second half, with both teams' defence in full-force after an epic goal for each.
At the end of the third quarter, South Mandurah had increased their lead, leaving the Tigers to fight their way back from 18-9 - and fight they did.
The fourth quarter saw the Tigers' offence and defence work together to bridge the gap between the teams and as the quarter rolled on, they managed to close the gap to 20-15.
Tigers and Falcons fans were on the edge of their seats, chanting for their respective teams and watching in awe as they battled it out.
It was South Mandurah's Kerrilee Brown who stole the show, with an impeccable defence that firmly held her team's lead.
Brown intercepted countless kicks which would've seen the Tigers move towards the goal, and when the final siren blew and the 20-15 lead was secured, the crowd erupted into a cheer.
Both teams celebrated the Falcons' win, with admirable sportsmanship from the Tigers as they rushed over to say their congratulations.
Coach Solomon Daw acknowledged the Tigers in his speech after the game, saying "It is a pleasure to coach and have my girls play against you."
The Tigers had similar sentiments, with coach Jason Mudge letting the team know they'd played a "fantastic" game.
Daw concluded his speech by saying it was important to him to highlight women's football, and that the skill shown across the competition was something for everyone to be proud of.
Samantha Ferguson
Samantha Ferguson is a journalist at the Mandurah Mail. She is an entertainment, sport, crime, community and education journalist with a special interest in investigative pieces and human interest stories.
Samantha Ferguson is a journalist at the Mandurah Mail. She is an entertainment, sport, crime, community and education journalist with a special interest in investigative pieces and human interest stories.
