Women’s Country Championships: South West coach Nathan Smith credits side’s character after retaining title

South West Women’s Country Championships coach Nathan Smith paid tribute to his side’s character in the wake of the region claiming a sixth title from six editions of the carnival on Friday. Comfortable wins over Peel and Great Northern on the first day of the championships ensured the all-conquering side would again progress through to the decider, regardless of the results from the last pool stage fixtures on Friday morning. For the third year running, South West were not able emerge from the carnival without a loss, suffering a four-point loss to Great Southern in which they were flattered by the margin. But in the final, they were then able to bounce back in style, proving too good for Great Northern to win by 21 points under lights at Hands Oval. Smith said there was no panic among his charges after their sole defeat of the championships. “We had a bit of a hiccup this morning against Great Southern, but it shows the character of the girls, when you come out against Great Northern and play an absolute cracker of a game,” he said. “(Against Great Southern) we just lost our game plan a little bit, lost our structure a little bit. After the game, we had a good chat, went for a swim for a bit of recovery, and refreshed and re-set.” In a final where the impact of two days worth of football looked to be telling on both sides, South West largely bossed proceedings but were not able to open up a significant lead due to their opponents’ dogged defending and their own inaccuracy in front of goal. A soccered finish from Great Northern’s Emily McAuley cut the margin back to four points in the early stages of the third term, but the hosts hardly allowed the challengers to breach their defensive 50 from there. Smith said Great Northern had not made things easy for his side but he had full confidence they would eventually be able to get the game on their terms. “I just said to stick to the way we wanted to play and the result would go our way in the end,” he said. “It’s a big weight off the shoulders now. I couldn’t be prouder.” Nola Marino medallist Ella Smith was recognised for a brilliant two days of football by being named as both the player of the final and the best player over the course of the championships. But Smith said depth is what separated the region from the chasing pack and each of his players deserved an equal share of the credit. “When you look at a midfield with Ella Smith, Beth Beckett and Kloe Bassett, I’m just really privileged to coach the whole group of them,” he said. “The biggest thing I learnt was to just trust my game plan because the girls will get the job done.” Donnybrook’s Smith was one of six players from the region named in the carnival’s All Stars side, alongside Beth Beckett, Rennie Meadmore, Christie Daniels (all Busselton), Kloe Bassett and Daisy Rigby (both Bunbury).