They were the last hope of the Orange Tigers senior teams' finals dreams, and while they pushed their Demons all the way, the Tigers fell short on Saturday.
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The Demons women booked their place in the semi-final on Saturday, overcoming a slow start to defeat the Orange Tigers 6.4.40 to 4.1.25.
It was all on the line in the final round fixture at South Dubbo Oval, with the winner advancing to a semi-final meeting with the Bathurst Bushrangers while a loss would mean season over.
But, on the back of strong defensive pressure, impressive ball movement and three goals from Lauren Hazell the Demons booked a spot in the final three in their first year back in the competition.
"I think it's a huge achievement," Demons coach Lucy Ewart said, the Demons women folding last year due to a lack of players.
"It's a really good reflection of the culture we're starting to build and the work the leadership group has done.
It looked like the Demons might have only had next season to look forward to after the first quarter on Saturday.
The Tigers booted two goals while keeping the hosts scoreless to take control of the match early.
Orange booted another major in the second quarter but the Demons soon began to get into the contest.
They lead by four at half-time before three third-quarter goals resulted in the Demons building a lead over the Tigers and they went on with the job in the final term to complete a 15-point win.
"It was definitely our best performance of the season, no doubt. We moved the ball really cleanly and efficiently and the defensive running was nice to see."
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