2023 grand final: Gunnedah beat Inverell | PHOTOS

Even before the first bounce in Saturday's grand final against Inverell on a warm August afternoon at Wolseley Oval, Poochettes danced while grouped together on their lush home ground as their theme song, "Who Let the Dogs Out", blared over the sound system.

And they did even more dancing later in the afternoon, after a third-quarter surge propelled them to a 13-point win over Inverell - the final score 4.10 (34) to 2.9 (21).

In winning a second premiership in their short but illustrious history, the Poochettes exorcised a ghost of the past. The Saints upset them in last season's decider - the one-point loss their only defeat of the year.

Gunnedah captain Khobi Devine, who has been with the side since their premiership-winning 2020 foundation year, said the Poochettes' success was largely built on the friendships among the players.

"And the more we have fun, the more we play better," she added.

Gunnedah certainly had fun in the third quarter. After a sluggish start, the minor premiers did not kick their first major until a tick over 10 minutes remained in the third term. But Breeana Ward's strike was followed by goals to Chelsea Palmer, Zoe Palmer and Devine.

The four answered blasts rocketed Gunnedah to a 23-point lead at three-quarter time: 4.10 (34) to 1.5 (11).

Inverell captain Clare McCosker booted a goal with just over 14 minutes left in the contest, reducing the lead to 14 points. But again, Inverell were unable to parlay a major into momentum.

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Devine said Gunnedah had "a really good chat" at half-time. "And just tried to keep up our positivity."

That they did.

"Couldn't be prouder of every single one of our girls," said Devine, who described the win as "amazing".

Devine's deputy, Katrina Rekunow - another foundation Poochette - was named best on ground.

McCosker said she was "really proud" of the Saints.

"We put a good effort in for the full game," she said. "And we really matched it with Gunnedah for a lot of the game. They were just too good in patches."

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