Returning to Magain Stadium for a special Mother’s Day fixture in perfect conditions, it was the visiting Norwood side who struck early with the first two goals.

Jackson Callow opened the scoring following a free kick, before Norwood skipper Jacob Kennerley added another.

Panther milestone man Luke Bogle, playing his 50th game, had a chance to respond after his strong contested mark, but his set shot drifted left.

South Adelaide began to wrestle back momentum, turning the game into a tough, contested affair with both sides intercepting forward entries.

The breakthrough finally came when Jaiden Magor released Isaac Birt in space, and the young Panther finished cleanly to spark the home crowd.

Norwood responded quickly through Callow again, who began to pose a real challenge for the Panthers’ defence — now without captain Sam Skinner, who left the field after a heavy knock.

In a near mirror image of the quarter's opening, South was awarded a free kick for an in the back infringement.

Big man Cody Lowe, in just his second Hostplus SANFL League game, calmly converted to keep the Panthers in touch. However, Norwood had the last say, with Jacob Newton kicking a late goal to give the Redlegs a 14-point lead at the first break.

The second quarter saw both sides locked in a fierce battle, with the ball spending long stretches in dispute.

South created multiple promising forward chains but couldn’t convert. One standout sequence featured Will McCarthy, who had is best game to date, spoiling a key contest, then regathering to link with Tom Wheaton and Noah Howes, only for Norwood's desperate defence to snuff out the attack.

The only goal of the term came when Norwood capitalised on a quick forward movement, allowing Newton to kick his second. The Panthers trailed by just 18 points at the main break, well within reach.

However, Norwood came out strong in the third, with goals to Izaak Twelftree and Mitchell Nicholas pushing the margin further. Corey Grocock responded for South, snapping truly from a stoppage to end the Panthers’ goal drought.

Soon after, a downfield free kick allowed Jacob Collins to chisel a neat kick into Brad Jefferies, who marked and converted, keeping the Panthers in touch.

The Panthers ended the quarter with a composed running goal from Howes, cutting the margin to 22 at the break, in a quarter that saw four goals to three in Norwood's favour.

Unfortunately, any hopes of a final-term resurgence were quickly dashed. Just 54 seconds in, Callow kicked his third, dampening the Panthers’ momentum.

Still, South fought on. Young gun Phoenix Hargrave lit up the Jim Deane Grandstand with a spectacular boundary-line goal, keeping the home side within striking distance. Moments later, a clever snap from Grocock found Howes, who marked and converted again to give the crowd renewed hope.

But from there, the Redlegs took control. Missing their captain in defence, South struggled to contain Norwood’s forwards, who extended the final margin to five goals.

Despite the result, there were strong performances across the board. Ollie Davis led the way with 18 disposals, 8 tackles, and 8 clearances, while Ollie Northam was influential in the ruck, tallying 29 hitouts and 7 clearances.

With the state game bye next weekend, the Panthers will use the break to regroup before facing the Eagles on Saturday, May 24 at Maughan Thiem Kia Oval. First bounce is at 2:30pm, following the SANFLW match.

Written by Alex Pigou

The South Adelaide Reserves continued their winning ways against Norwood this Sunday, albeit in a more tumultuous manner than last week.

Norwood were fast out of the blocks and efficient inside their forward half, registering the first goal of the day after barely a minute of play.

South steadied with strong field position for the remainder of the quarter, but some missed opportunities combined with Norwood’s sharp shooting had the visitors hold a slender lead at the first break.

Ben Ashley-Cooper showed strength and power from the middle in the second, combining with Charlie Duncan and Finn Emile-Brennan on the outside to again give South plenty of looks.

Despite goals to an ever-reliable Blake Rodrigues and a smooth-moving Angus Bradley, Norwood would again take the most of their forays forward and would hold a slender two-point lead at the main break.

After absorbing an early shot in the third, South would go on to dominate field play in the quarter. Their nine behinds would only be complimented by one goal however, courtesy of a lively Ryan Borlace, and leave the game in the balance with the scores all tied up heading into the final quarter.

Some excellent work behind the ball from Dayne McGary and Jay Chapman provided even more opportunities up front, and South refused to let this one get away. Ashley-Cooper, Borlace and Sam Hindes combined to pile on three quick goals, and it looked like South had finally broken through.

After holding strong in defence and surviving one more rally from an impressively resilient Norwood outfit, the South Adelaide Reserves walked away with their second win on the trot, to cap off a consistent and mature display.

The Panther reserves will have the week off before returning to face the top of the table Eagles at the early time of 9:40am on Saturday, May 24 at Maughan Thiem Kia Oval, followed by the SANFLW side.