ANA 2025: Kangas go top with win over Railways, Royals keep up the pressure and Magpies boost finals hopes

Kangas 1 shot to the top of the Albany Netball Association A1 ladder after a comprehensive round eight win over Railways 1 on Saturday afternoon. The clinical 57-19 result helped Kangas jump to the top of the standings ahead of the mid-season break. Level on points with Narrikup 1, who had a bye at the weekend, they currently have a better percentage but Narrikup have a game in hand. During Saturday’s fixtures at Albany Leisure and Aquatic Centre, Kangas’ blistering start against Railways of five goals on the trot laid the foundations for a dominant first quarter, which they ended 13-4 ahead. They extended their lead in the second quarter as Railways struggled to string together a scoring run. At half-time it was 29-14 and the one-way traffic continued after the major break as Kangas rattled in 11 goals without reply in the closing stages of the third quarter. Railways managed two goals in the final quarter, but Kangas showed no mercy with a five-goal burst at the close. Royals Saints 1 did their best to put pressure on the ladder leaders and sit two points adrift after their 65-42 win over plucky Bullets 1. A three-goal run midway through the first quarter gave Royals some breathing space as they led 15-10 at the first break and then finished the half with five goals in a row for a 32-21 advantage. It was an uphill battle for Bullets who held their own but could not make up lost ground as Royals eased away to a 44-32 lead at the end of the third quarter. A five-goal blitz at the start of the fourth quarter knocked the stuffing out of Bullets as Royals cruised home. Meanwhile, Magpies 1 scored a vital win over Griffins 1 to boost their finals aspirations. Griffins 1 remain pointless at the bottom of the table but gave a good account of themselves in the 41-51 loss. A moment near the end of the second quarter, where they missed successive shots on goal, proved pivotal as they had fought back from 20-14 down to be just one goal adrift. However, Magpies promptly gathered their wits and scored three in a row to regain the advantage. Griffins won the second quarter as Magpies coach Rosemary Wolter switched prolific goal attack Lauren Bracewell to goal defence, but once she switched her back again, her side clicked once more. Griffins coach Gail Butterworth praised the efforts of her young team, of who seven were aged 18 or under. “I’m proud of them – we won a quarter – we just couldn’t stop their goal attack,” she said. “We set ourselves little goals, like scoring 10 per quarter, and we achieved that.” While Bracewell starred for Magpies, Griffins centre Jennelle Marwick also had a strong performance. “She’s amazing, a real champion,” Butterworth said.