A tough draw to start the season has yielded one win and two losses for the Tigers, with coach Olivia Aughton left to rue missed opportunities against Wangaratta in round three. 

Though they haven’t gotten the wins they would have liked, Aughton was buoyed by the fact her said wasn’t far off the pace.

“I certainly don’t mind playing the hard teams at the start of the season,” she said.

“It was tough to face the reigning premiers in round one, but I think we took it to them.

“It’s just polishing the last few minutes of each quarter that had hindered us.

“Those games that could go either way could end up meaning a lot at the end of the season, the girls know that.

“They know the pressure is on to find form against some of the top teams, but in saying that we’ll continue to chip away.” 

With a mixture of new faces and old hands at the Albury Sportsground this season, Aughton said it was always going to take a little bit of time for chemistry to develop.

On the plus side, the likes of Gabrielle McRae and Jasmina Ainsworth and Jess Fisher-Curnow have been leading for the front.

“We’ve just got to be consistent,” Aughton said.

“It’s more about guiding our newer and younger players, getting them into the mix.

“It’s just going to be a matter of time, we can’t expect them to be completely on song after three games but we have to keep heading in the right direction, keep our focus.” 

The pressure is unlikely to ease up against North Albury on Wednesday, when they face the red-hot Hoppers.

With three wins from as many starts so far this season, the Hoppers will be out to maintain their perfect record and cement their premiership credentials.

Wednesday’s other game will see the Wodonga Raiders take on the Bulldogs.