The platform for Souths’ 7-0 win was set up in the first half at Bob Roach Field as they found the back of the net five times while at the same time restricting their rivals to just one circle penetration.

That circle penetration took Confederates 31 minutes to produce as Souths applied an almost full-field press in defence.

While Souths did drop their intensity in the second half and both sides finished with six penalty corners, by then the damage had certainly been done.

“Our defence set the platform definitely and that is what we were aiming to do,” Souths coach Melissa Bestwick said.

“We knew we wanted to put them on the back foot early and we did that, so it was a really positive outcome.

“We worked really hard at training on our defence and making our tackles outside the 25 [yard line]. I said to the girls that I didn’t want any made inside our 23 today, and in the first half that came to fruition.”

Coming into the match off the back of their first win of the season, Souths began Saturday’s contest full of confidence and did not take long to make their presence felt.

With just three minutes gone and off their second penalty corner play, Souths opened their account as Ali Stanford cleaned up a deflection from Tahlia Cranston’s initial strike.

Souths’ second goal came in similar fashion eight minutes later, this time Ashleigh Corby pouncing after Confederates goalkeeper Stephanie Hinds used her glove to block Candice Falconer’s shot from the top of the circle.

With Souths working hard in defence, Confederates struggled to get out of their own half. The Orange side’s transfer options were shut down, which often saw the ball fruitlessly blasted long in hope of finding a stick.

Souths were by no means perfect, at times rushing passes and turning over possession, but as those errors came well away from their circle, Confederates could not capitalise.

Corby, who created leads all match with her high work rate off the ball, made it 3-0 with 20 minutes gone when she steamed onto a bobbling effort from Stacey Tomlinson and turned it into the net.

Sarah Watterson got her name on the scoresheet as well before Confederates finally created a chance. Taking a quick free hit, Tiffany Davis released Anna Evans.

It was only a sharp one-on-one save from Souths goalkeeper Kate Brown that denied Evans after she worked her way into the circle.

Down the other end of the field Brown’s opposite Hinds had to work much harder, at one stage making a double save off Stanford.

But when Souths were awarded a penalty stroke after the half-time siren when the ball struck a defender on the line, Hinds was unable to come up with the block.

She went the right way, but Amelia Burke’s effort had too much power and snuck past her on the left post to make it 5-0.

The second half was more open as Souths dropped their intensity and the visitors renewed their efforts.

This time it took Confederates four minutes to notch up a circle penetration and they almost scored soon after off a powerful Annette Pakinga penalty corner strike.

Evans also tested Brown as her speed helped her in behind Souths’ defence for a second time, but in the final 15 minutes the two blues lifted and closed out the match.

Corby made it a personal hat-trick when she deflected in a Falconer ball from a penalty corner play, Corby then turning provider as her cross set up Nikki Braun.

“I did emphasis at half-time that we needed to go back out there like it was nil-all or we were one goal down, but I guess sometimes our mental state isn’t the best,” Bestwick said of the second half.

“We did score two goals though in that second half which was a positive, but we could have done a lot more in that second half given what we had done in the first.”

SOUTHS 7 (Ashleigh Corby 3, Ali Stanford, Nikki Braun, Sarah Watterson, Amelia Burke) defeated CONFEDERATES 0