After eighteen home and away games and three weeks of finals, the 2026 GDFNL A grade netball grand final is finally upon us and will take place this Saturday the 12th of September.
Winchelsea and East Geelong will face off in the grand final as they battle it out on the netball court for the premiership cup following two very successful seasons from both sides.
Winchelsea finished in fourth place on the ladder from 13 wins and have won all three of their finals games against Thomson, Bannockburn and Inverleigh by at least 10 goals.
East Geelong finished in second place on the ladder from 14 wins and defeated both Bannockburn and Inverleigh in their finals games to secure an early spot in the grand final.
The last time these two sides met was in Round 15 which resulted in a six goal win in favour of Winchelsea despite East Geelong holding the lead for the first two quarters.
Prior to that matchup, these teams also met earlier in the season in Round 4 which also saw Winchelsea take the win from East Geelong by three goals, who were leading for three quarters.
Both Winchelsea and East Geelong are no strangers to grand finals, as Winchelsea have won three A Grade premierships in 2010, 2011 and 2012 and East Geelong, more recently, in 2022 and 2024.
The 2024 grand final match was actually played between East Geelong and Winchelsea, which resulted in a six goal win in favour of East Geelong who led for the entirety of the game.
Whether its revenge on their minds or the chance to walk away with the premiership cup after a highly competitive season, this grand final matchup is one you won’t want to miss.
Players to watch: The player to watch from East Geelong is tall defender Stephanie Boyce, who primarily plays in goalkeeper and has proven to be a tough defensive competitor.
Boyce has been named in the A grade team of the year twice in both 2024 and 2026, and is a two time premiership player for both of East Geelong’s A grade grand final wins.
With an outstanding netball resume and a lot of finals experience, Boyce will certainly be an exciting East Geelong player to look out for in the grand final.
The player to watch from Winchelsea is young attacker Layla Pretorius who has already made an impact within her first year of playing in the A grade side for Winchelsea.
Pretorius has played in every game for Winchelsea this season and has scored 404 goals across the 21 games, giving her an average of 19 goals scored per game.
At just 16 years of age, Pretorius plays an important role as a tall goal attack and will provide an exciting matchup against East Geelong captain and goal defender Madeline Solly.
Feel good story: Claudia Cook from East Geelong has the opportunity to become the seventh A grade netball player in the history of the league to win both a premiership and the Margaret Webb medal in the same season.
Cook has had an outstanding season and plays an important role for her side as a centre in the midcourt, allowing her to take home the 2026 Margaret Webb medal with 31 votes.
This award made Cook the fifth player to win two Margaret Webb medals in the league and the first to do so with East Geelong, which also named her in the 2026 team of the year.
With seven team of the year selections, two Margaret Webb medals and five East Geelong best and fairest wins, Cook will be a strong competitor for her side as she lines up against fellow team of the year player Meg Royal from Winchelsea in the centre circle.
Final prediction: Winchelsea by 3 goals.
