NS SCOREBOARD: SSN 2023 Round 2

NS SCOREBOARD: SSN 2023 Round 2

Contributors: Tash Rudd, Georgia Doyle, Jenny Sinclair, Ariane Virgona, Katrina Nissen, Ian Harkin

Photographers: Simon Leonard, Hannah Howard, May Bailey, Shaun Sharp

 

 

Match Results

Sunshine Coast Lightning 65 def Queensland Firebirds 55 ( 14-21, 7-18, 18-15, 16-11)

The match between the Adelaide Thunderbirds and NSW Swifts was abandoned and called a draw. (12-16, 13-9)

West Coast Fever 74 def GIANTS Netball 73 (21-20, 19-17, 23-15, 11-21)

Melbourne Vixens 62 def Collingwood Magpies 61 (15-18, 13-15, 13-14, 21-14)

 

Amy Parmenter on the run. (Image by: May Bailey | Netball Scoop)

 

Let’s Talk

There’s plenty to say about Round 2’s blackouts, whiteouts and fadeouts, and much of it isn’t good.

Chaotic scenes during two of the weekend’s matches left the netball world stunned, and raised more questions than answers. However, both match outcomes, caused in part by human error, have massive implications for the integrity of the competition, including the make up of the final ladder, and who may or may not appear in the final’s series, and who receives home finals. Just about every team in the competition could be impacted, even those not directly involved in the game. 

Netball Australia have confirmed that two investigations will occur following the Thunderbirds/Swifts match, and a further one into the Vixens/Magpies match.  

Fans were left steaming after the debacle in Adelaide. Firstly, local supporters had to queue in the hot sun for over an hour, when the game was initially delayed. While both teams had trained on the court in the preceding 24 hours, a prematch court inspection deemed the court unsafe due to decals that were a different texture to the rest of the court. A frantic period happened immediately pre-game, when signage and sponsorship stickers were removed, and the court washed, buffed and two point stickers reapplied.  

As if one technical issue wasn’t enough, at half time yet another problem arose – this time with lighting. With teams still in the change rooms on a prolonged break due to issues with a transformer, the stadium was illuminated exclusively by pink spotlights and torches, as management tried desperately to restore power. 

 

Stadium staff did a great job of entertaining the crowd when the lights went out. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

Stadium staff did a great job of entertaining the crowd when the lights went out. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

 

After 20 minutes elapsed, it was deemed that the match would have exceeded the 120 minute allowable time frame, and so it was abandoned, called a draw and two points allocated to each team. 

It was a disappointing outcome, with the repercussions set to go on. For instance, do fans deserve a refund, what financial impact could that have on the Thunderbirds and the league, will the loss of two points and possibly percentage haunt or advantage either of the clubs, or indeed other clubs, come finals time? 

Unfortunately the court has been the graveyard for a number of ACLs over the years, and so while the right decision was made to halt play, further questions are sure to be asked about the court surface, including how and when the issue was identified, why it took so long to repair, and how it or the lighting issue can be prevented from occurring again. And while the decal surface is potentially an easy fix, the transformer outage indicates a wider problem – the lack of government investment in women’s sport

 

Another embarrassing incident took place late in the Magpies v Vixens match in Melbourne. In the final minutes of the match, with the scores sitting at 59-56 in the Pies’ favour, Vixens were gifted consecutive centre passes. With the Magpies shooting at 93% accuracy, and converting 78% of their centre passes, there’s a strong probability that if they’d had their rightful centre pass, they would have scored one or two points.

Instead the Vixens scored a goal, potentially gaining a two to three goal advantage that may not have been theirs. While no blame should ever fall on the club, it’s an error of the highest order by match officials. None of the three umpires noticed at the time, and when Magpies coach Nicole Richardson tried to remonstrate, she was ordered back to her bench by match officials and play went on. 

In a post match press conference, the livid Richardson said, “What happened in the last minute and a half is an absolute fiasco. You cannot have a result like that. This is an elite level competition. You have an automated scoreboard that tells you whose centre pass it is. 

“You have a bench who knows exactly whose centre pass it is, but the bench do not have the power to do anything about it. That has cost us the game and that is why I am angry.

“Sophie (Garbin) addressed it. I then got up and addressed it. I was basically ignored. They just wanted to finish the game and we wanted to bring it to their attention then and there in the moment of the game and they didn’t want to listen to us and the game continued.”

“We have been completely robbed because we would have had an opportunity to go two goals up or an opportunity to starve them of the ball and take some time off the clock. And they shot after the siren anyway.”

Netball Australia have confirmed that under the rules of play, the result will stand.

Nicole Richardson sits in stunned silence after the match. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

Nicole Richardson sits in stunned silence after the match. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

 And what was with team fadeouts across the weekend? Fever dropped from 11 up to a one point win, the Magpies from a nine goal lead to a one point loss, the Swifts from a seven point margin to a draw when the game was cancelled, while Lightning’s 18 lead was pegged back to a more respectable 10. While the supershot had a large role to play in this, leads are too hard to come by to be so easily whittled away.  

Has Queensland Firebirds’ coach Bec Bulley landed on a possible winning line up almost by accident? After being completely outplayed in the first half by Sunshine Coast Lightning with her preferred seven on court, it was almost a case of bibs in the air for the second half as several positional changes were made. These included former captain Gabi Simpson going to the bench, and current captain Kim Ravaillion taking her place at wing defence. 

Whatever the reasoning behind the moves, they appeared to work as Firebirds improved markedly in the second half. We’ll have to wait and see what Bulley’s starting seven looks like for round three, but now she knows that she has options. One standout was Ruby Bakewell-Doran, who started the game at goal defence, but moved back to goal keeper. 

 

The tradition of close finishes between West Coast Fever and GIANTS Netball continues. In all, there have been eight Super Netball matches between the two teams decided by three goals or less, including one draw. In this week’s clash, Fever just held on to take the game 74-73, reversing the result from the corresponding fixture last year when GIANTS won 74-73.

Fever’s champion shooter Jhaniele Fowler can’t miss at the moment. She has had two perfect games to start the year. In fact, she has actually scored an incredible 167 straight goals without a miss in Super Netball. Her last miss was halfway through the first quarter of last year’s grand final.

And who would have thought it? The GIANTS-Fever clash was not only (perhaps) the least controversial match of the weekend, but also the least penalised (pro-rata count for abandoned match). The two clubs have a history of playing out some tremendous matches, and it’s great to see the tradition continue.

 

Physicality and concussion issues may not be at the forefront of discussions after Round 2, but they should definitely be looked at. During each match there were numerous bodies hitting the pine and at least one cringeworthy collision per game. Yet, despite the heightened awareness of Netball Australia’s concussion protocols, no player was sent from the court for assessment. 

 

The physicality in SSN will be under a microscope with several players potentially on concussion watch after Round 2. Image: Simon Leonard

The physicality in SSN will be under a microscope with several players potentially on concussion watch after Round 2. Image: Simon Leonard


 

Stats Leaders

Most goals – 59/59 Jhaniele Fowler (GIANTS v Fever)
Most supershots – 8/10 Sophie Dwyer (GIANTS v Fever)
Most intercepts – 5 Ruby Bakewell-Doran (Firebirds v Lightning)
Most deflections – 7 Kadie-Ann Dehaney (Firebirds v Lightning)
Most goal assists – 26 Alice Teague-Neeld  (GIANTS v Fever)
Most feeds – 40 Maddie Hay (GIANTS v Fever)
Most gains – 8 Courtney Bruce (GIANTS v Fever)
Most turnovers – 7 Mwai Kumwenda (Magpies v Vixens)
Most penalties – 18 Molly Jovic (Magpies v Vixens)

 

Jhaniele Fowler was once again unstoppable, shooting at 100% for the second match in a row. (Image by: May Bailey | Netball Scoop)


Injuries

Adelaide Thunderbirds captain Hannah Petty went off the court at the first quarter break with what is believed to be an ankle injury. She was seen on the medical bench for most of the second quarter and coach Tania Obst confirmed she wouldn’t be taking part in the rest of the match. 

Milestones and Debuts

Ash Unie made her Firebirds debut and officially became Birdie #108. 
Charlie Bell made her SSN and Lighting debut as team member #28
Ash Ervin also made her Lightning and SSN debut becoming number #29

 

Congratulations to Sarah Klau (Swifts), who made her 100th national league appearance, albeit in challenging circumstances.
Maddie Hay (GIANTS) made her return from injury and celebrated her 50th national league match.

 

Maddie Hay celebrated her 50th national league game. (Image by: May Bailey | Netball Scoop)


Break-out Performances of the Round

Sunshine Coast Lightning’s Annie Miller was a standout in only her second full 60 minute SSN match. Her ability to cut and drive and get onto the circle edge really hurt the Firebirds with Miller getting on top of her experienced opponent in Gabi Simpson who was sent to the bench at half time. Something we don’t see too often is Simpson on the bench which saw Kimberley Ravaillion move back to wing defence to try and stop the impact Miller was having. 

The maturity and growth in Miller from her rookie season in 2022 to now is great to see from a young player finding her feet in a new role, being a starting 7 player. 

Time to mention the commentators for a second week in a row! Bianca Chatfield, Sam Poolman and Emily Beaton did an exceptional job in Adelaide in trying circumstances. They not only had to ad-lib their way through some long and unscripted pauses, but scramble for information as quickly as they could, draw in guests, coaches and athletes to chat to, and keep the television audience informed. 

It was a masterclass in thinking on the run, particularly by Chatfield who was the glue that held the presentation together. 

 

Bianca Chatfield, Sam Poolman and Emily Beaton in Fox commentary. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

Commentary was put under immense pressure this week. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media


 

MATCH REPORTS

LIGHTNING 65 def FIREBIRDS 55 

By Tash Rudd 

 

It was a game of two halves in the “Battle of the Bruce” between the Queensland Firebirds and the Sunshine Coast Lightning. 

The Lightning jumped out to a fast first half, taking an 18 goal lead into the main break. 

After wholesale changes from coach Rebecca Bulley the Firebirds started the second half with fresh enthusiasm,  ready to show that they would fight out the match until the end. The changes paid dividends with Firebirds winning the last two quarters by 8 goals but ultimately it wasn’t enough for them to take out the match. 

The first Battle of the Bruce trophy went to Lightning with the end score being 65-55 in the Lightning’s favour. 

 

What worked?

The changes from Bulley really lifted the Firebirds in the 2nd half. Moving captain Kimberley Ravaillion back to wing defence allowed her to defensively come into the game, and her connection with centre Macy Gardner was strong as the pair instantly began creating turnover ball at the start of the 2nd half. In a change of goals attacks, Mia Stower was replaced by Emily Moore, which seemed to allow the attack end to flow better. They had better transition, creating more effective structures and angles in the attack end which in turn allowed Donnell Wallam to build confidence and pull in any balls thrown into her. 

 

Where the match was won and lost?

The Lightning seem to have a new found confidence this season, stemming off the back of the combination of Cara Koenen and Steph Wood. The Aussie Diamonds pair, who struggled in 2022, have been in blistering form. Koenen’s baseline drives were sublime, and her constant availability on second phase released pressure on the mid courters, allowing them to get on circle edge. Teams  facing Lightning haven’t been able to stop this so far in 2023. 

It’s been built on the back of confidence, as Coach Belinda Reynolds has appeared to have put a real belief in the players to execute the game plan she has given the team.

The Lightning really set up the win from the first half, taking the first quarter by 7 goals. But it was the second quarter which saw the away side put their foot down with combinations flourishing. On the other hand Firebirds started slowly but in the second quarter they completely fell apart with the connections in attack, silly errors such as footwork and an incorrect throw in from wing attack Lara Dunkley, which all helped Lighting extend their lead to 18. 

The Lightning attack was fast and smooth with the ball seemingly getting through the net with little defensive pressure from the Firebirds in the 1st quarter. The 2nd quarter started the way the 1st finished until a quiet Gabi Simpson began to get a couple of tips on balls, however the transition was not there for the Firebirds and they were unable to convert, only scoring 7 goals in the entire second quarter. 

Lightning punished the Firebirds just the way coach Reynolds asked for in a timeout, executing their own centre pass plays and converting the turn over ball which came from Firebirds unforced errors. In contrast, the Firebirds lost possession off their own mistakes, but when the opposition is capitalising on your errors then that in turn becomes pressure. 

 

Which players/combinations stood out?

Wood and Koenen continued their beautiful form from round one with their connection being put to little pressure from the Firebirds defence whose heads were just spinning with the amount of ball movement coming from the shooting duo. 

In only her second full 60 minute game wing attack Annie Miller was dominant with her drives and connections with Wood and Koenen who she credited after the match, saying, “Having those experienced players around me (Steph and Cara) has really helped my confidence in being a starting player and settling on court.” 

Miller also said how she was trying to stick to her strengths with her speed and direction changes and is working hard on the areas she needs to. 

Mahalia Cassidy was another stand out performer for the Lightning, doing a power of shut down defensive work which paid off hugely. The pressure from Cassidy caused the breakdown of the connection between Dunkley and her attacking teammates which also resulted in the uncharacteristic turnovers. 

For the Firebirds, Ruby Bakewell-Doran was a standout in defence and in particular when she moved back to goal keeper. After a slow first quarter she began to find her timing, and her elevation and deceptiveness to get up in the air for the ball paid dividends and saw her finish the game with 5 intercepts and 6 deflections. 

Another stand out for the Firebirds in their second half win was Macy Gardner who entered into the centre position at half time. Gardner’s energy really brought a life to the Firebirds through both attack and defence. She had 17 feeds, 12 assists and 1 intercept in the half, whilst only making 1 turnover. The steadiness but also confidence to let the ball go into the shooting circle was a much needed injection for the Firebirds. 

The Lightning will be pleased with their first half and won’t be happy with the second half lapses and allowing Firebirds to build into the game. And in contrast Firebirds will be immensely frustrated with their first half and will be left wondering where that second half performance was during the first two quarters.

Lots for both sides to work on moving into round three. 

 

Shooting statistics 

Queensland Firebirds 
Donnell Wallam  41/53 (77%)
Mia Stower  5/8 (62%)
Emily Moore  6/11 (54%)

Lightning 
Cara Koenen  52/53 (98%)
Steph Wood  11/13 (84%)
Charlie Bell  1/1 (100%)

MVP – Steph Wood

 

Charlie Bell made her SSN debut for the Lightning against former teammate Ruby Bakewell-Doran. Image: Simon Leonard

Charlie Bell made her SSN debut for the Lightning against former teammate Ruby Bakewell-Doran. Image: Simon Leonard

 

Friends to Foes - Ash Ervin debuts against her former teammate. Image: Simon Leonard

Friends to Foes – Ash Ervin debuts against her former teammate. Image: Simon Leonard

 

Kadie-Ann Dehaney continues to impress in 2023 as she collected 6 gains for the match. Image: Simon Leonard

Kadie-Ann Dehaney continues to impress in 2023 as she collected 6 gains for the match. Image: Simon Leonard

 

Steph Wood on her way to an MVP performance. Image Simon Leonard


 

THUNDERBIRDS 25 v SWIFTS 25 – match declared a draw

By Georgia Doyle (originally published by Fox Netball)

 

In the most bizarre Super Netball game ever, the Round 2 NSW Swifts and Adelaide Thunderbirds game was abandoned due to technical issues. 

After battling against court surface problems, resulting in a delayed match start, play was further pushed back after lighting issues arose during half time. 

With both teams sitting on 25 points, and the court still in semi-darkness after 20 minutes, the match was declared abandoned having exceeded the allowable 120 minute period. 

As a result, the match ended in a stalemate. 

The game was first delayed by an hour, Netball Australia having deemed the court unsafe due to slippery decals. Signage and sponsorship stickers were removed, and the court washed and buffed before players were allowed on court.

Both teams trained on the court in the 24 hours leading up to the match, and it is unclear when the issue was identified and why they waited until the eleventh hour to rectify it. Netball Australia Head of Integrity, Nicole Malcher was at the match to oversee proceedings.

“We identified earlier today that the court surface needed a little more work so we have delayed the start of play to allow that work to take place” she said in a pre game interview.

As if one technical issue wasn’t enough, at half time yet another problem arose – this time with lighting. With teams still in the change rooms on a prolonged break, the stadium was illuminated exclusively by pink spotlights and torches, as management tried to rectify the issue so play could resume.

However, given the match would have exceeded the 120 minute allowable time frame, it had to be abandoned, called a draw, and two points allocated to each team.

Both sides expressed their disappointment at being unable to play to a result, and it certainly wasn’t the way expatriate South Australian, and current Swift, Sarah Klau would have wanted to celebrate her 100th game. 

Speaking post match, Swifts’ goal attack Helen Housby said, “It’s so frustrating honestly, no one likes to have a draw, even if you play 60 minutes, but not to even have the opportunity to win the game, it is really sad and there were some emotions in the changing room.”

Swifts coach Briony Akle also spoke to the unusual scenario.

“I don’t know how to sum this day up, from showing up to slippery decals, then [being sent home at half time]. But at the end of the day, in 2021 we won a premiership through adversity [so we won’t let it phase us” she said after the match.

The last time a match was abandoned at this level was back in 2008, when West Coast Fever had issues with a leaking roof in Perth. 

Australian Diamonds head coach Stacey Marinkovich was at today’s match

“I don’t know if it was a venue issue, but obviously you want to have back up systems that will allow matches to play out or so that games can be replayed, and we have such a tight turnaround that it’s not possible” she said post-match in regards to the technical issues.

It’s likely that further investigations will follow, to ensure the debacle isn’t repeated. 

 

FULL CIRCLE SARAH KLAU

NSW Swifts goal keeper Sarah Klau notched up her 100th national game in a strange fashion, only being able to play out half the match. She made eight appearances for the Thunderbirds before making the bold move east in 2017 where she continues to reap rewards, having played 32 international matches for Diamonds and won Super Netball two premierships, with sights set firmly on a third. 

ABANDONED AND EVEN

Games must be completed within a 120 minute time slot, and due to the copious delays this was not achievable meaning the match had to be abandoned, a Super Netball first. Teams take two points each, perhaps the only positive of this is that the scores were tied at the time the match was called off. 

 

Shooting statistics

Thunderbirds
Eleanor Cardwell 13/13 (100%)
Lucy Austin 7/9 (78%)
Tippah Dwan 2/2 (100%)

Swifts
Romelda Aiken-George 15/19 (79%)
Helen Housby 10/14 (71%)

 

Thunderbird captain Hannah Petty has only played a handful of minutes so far this season. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

Thunderbird captain Hannah Petty has only played a handful of minutes so far this season. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

 

Tayla Williams (Thunderbirds) and Allie Smith (Swifts) battle for the pocket ball. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

Tayla Williams (Thunderbirds) and Allie Smith (Swifts) battle for the pocket ball. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

 

Elle Cardwell and Helen Housby catchup after the match was called off. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

What else is there to do but catch up with your country kinswoman. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

 

TBirds thanking the crowd for their patience and support. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

TBirds thanking the crowd for their patience and support. Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media


 

FEVER 74 def GIANTS 73

By Jenny Sinclair

In a supershot superfest, West Coast Fever traded blows with the Giants, but held their nerve to take out a one point nail biter. It was a scintillating match between the two archrivals, and could have gone either way until the last second. 

In a theme that ran throughout the match, Fever crafted a lead each quarter, only to see it frustratingly reeled in by the Giants’ shooters long range prowess. 

With scores level in the early stages of the match, it  took until the second quarter for Fever to break their opponent’s shackles. With his side out by 10 points, Fever coach Dan Ryan called a time out, and directed his troops to slow the tempo of the game. The move backfired however, when four successive supershots by Jo Harten and Sophie Dwyer blew the margin to pieces.  

Coming out of the half time break, Giants’ coach Julie Fitzgerald rued what she described as some silly errors and a lack of discipline by her side. 

Speaking with Fox commentary, she said, “I was happy with the fightback, but we had five or seven minutes in there where we didn’t play as well as we could have.”

Fever’s full court defence allowed their opponent’s little breathing room, but they were ultimately unable to keep the Giants out of supershot range across the match. Jo Harten and Sophie Dwyer were ice cool at the post, putting up 15 supershots to drag back leads that blew out as far as 15 points at times.

The final quarter was a nail biter, as Giants once again reduced the deficit to level pegging. Having snuck ahead by just one, Fever’s wing defence Jess Anstiss  pulled in an intercept on the death knock to close out the match. 

Shooting accuracy proved the ultimate difference between the two teams, with Fever hitting 96 per cent  to the Giants’ 83. Jhaniele Fowler once again led the way for Fever, shooting 59 goals in her second perfect outing, and providing a rock steady presence under the post. 

Giants’ coach Fitzgerald was pleased with her side’s improvement from last week, but rued their loss of composure in the second quarter. 

“We really let ourselves down a bit, but we can rectify that,” she said in a post match interview.

“I’m really, really proud of the effort, and the difference from last week, if we can keep building we showed some really good signs.”

 It’s been a strong start to Fever’s title defence, but while the Giants’ lifeboats aren’t out yet, they will be hoping for some calmer waters ahead. 

 

HAY THERE

Wing attack Maddie Hay made a much needed return from severe bone bruising to her knee, to celebrate her 50th national league match. However, the make-up of the Giants’ roster is still perhaps cause for concern. All four midcourters are originally wing defenders, with Jamie-Lee Price and Hay converted into attacking options. So if injury strikes the forward line, as it has done recently, cracks can appear in the Giants’ offense.

FLAWLESS  FOWLER

Long touted as the best goal shooter in the world, five time Super Netball MVP Jhaniele Fowler continued her impressive start to the season. Across two games, the nerveless Jamaican has shot 114 goals at 100 per cent accuracy. 

YOUTH GROUP

Giants’ coach Julie Fitzgerald has built a young roster around her experienced spine of Harten, Jamie-Lee Price and April Brandley. Her “kids” – four of them around 21 years of age – are all standing up in the world’s best netball cauldron. 

 

Shooting Statistics

Fever
Jhaniele Fowler 59/59 (100%)
Sasha Glasgow 10/13 (77%)

Giants
Jo Harten 29/36 (81%)
Sophie Dwyer 29/34 (85%)

MVP: Alice Teague-Neeld

 

Jamie-Lee Price and Verity Simmons challenge for the ball. (Image by: May Bailey | Netball Scoop)

 

Courtney Bruce coming through for the intercept. (Image by: May Bailey | Netball Scoop)

 

Jo Harten made a welcome return to the court, after a medium term knee injury. (Image by: May Bailey | Netball Scoop)

 

Jamie-Lee Price and Alice Teague-Neeld  have both started the season in fine form. (Image by: May Bailey | Netball Scoop)


VIXENS 62 def MAGPIES 61

By Ariane Virgona

 

This game had it all.

Bodies on the ground, two cautions, held balls, umpiring errors, a roaring crowd, incredible intercepts, you name it!

Coming off the back of a convincing win and strong start to the season, the Magpies were looking to upset the Vixens in a home game at John Cain Arena in the Melbourne Darby. The battle of the Victorian teams always means that bragging rights are always up for grabs, and it really is anyone’s game.  With the return of Diamond’s defender Jo Western and the elevation of training partner Emily Andrew, the Vixens were aiming for a strong start and converting off their gains, after falling to Fever last week in the first quarter.

With almost every piece of the puzzle in place to topple the Vixens, with a 9-goal lead 5 minutes into the final quarter, a double Vixens centre pass in the last three minutes of the game saw the game seized by the visitors, leading to uproar from Magpies Coach Nicole Richardson, who attempted to alert the umpire to this mistake, but was dismissed. Three defenders over the arms of Mwai Kumwenda didn’t help to distract her from execution, slotting a supershot after the final siren to win the game and MVP of the match.

 

Where the game was won and lost. 

Aside from a short stint in the first quarter, the Magpies were much in control throughout the game and largely seemed to dictate the intensity and the positioning of the Vixens out on court. The Magpies pushed the Vixens wide and confused the space, causing turnover ball and intercepts when the passes were televised, and their trademark give-and-go was restricted. The timing of the Vixens on the ball was slightly off, which was reflected in the breakdown in transition from defence to the attacking end and the reduced scoreboard pressure across the first three quarters. Even the switch of the defenders and the midcourt after half time saw little reprieve until the dying minutes.

The Vixens contested the ball and provided ample opportunity to at least tie the score up (6 intercepts and 14 deflections) in the first three quarters, but penetration into the goal third proved challenging at times, which is an area that was of concern for the side with the out of Rahni Samason. Goal accuracy too was also an area of concern in the first half, with the Vixens shooters sitting below the 90% accuracy mark, but this was rectified in the final half.

Despite the higher centre pass to goal rate for the Magpies, the Vixens reported higher goals from gains and gain to goal rates than the Magpies, with a much cleaner game particularly in the last quarter that helped them eat away at the deficit that looked insurmountable. The cool and calm presence of Kumwenda and Austin helped them to climb that mountain. This was also assisted by the patience of the team with the ball and shorter and sharper play to craft their way to circle edge.  The sense of urgency of the Vixens seemed to be missing from the game until the last portion of the last quarter, leaving fans wondering whether this intensity could have been utilised earlier.

The Magpies’ attack looked slick and in unison, with multiple options to the ball, finding depth on the second phase and utilizing the centre channel to feed into the circle. This opened a direct and safer route to Nelson, who was shooting at 98% for the game, and meant that the Magpies were not forcing the ball in as done in previous years. Garbin held her own outside of the circle, with 19 feeds and 11 centre pass receives, drawing the goal defender out to allow the one-on-one with Nelson inside the circle and space for the pinpoint high-ball feed.

The defensive pressure of the Magpies was especially noteworthy. The intimidation factor of Ward and the pressure from Jovic and Brazil created doubt and assisted with the Vixens having 16 unforced turnovers and 21 general play turnovers, compared to the Magpies 9 and 19, respectively. The Magpies seemed to have also forced the Vixens to use the backdoor option on the centre pass with Weston (10) and Austin (16) in the top five for centre pass receives, but not Liz Watson, who usually likes to dominate this statistic.  We saw that the penalty count did climb quite high throughout the game, which not only just releases the pressure but means that frustrations can easily take away from execution.

While umpiring error may have caused the Vixens to win by one point, another consideration for the team is how the Magpies let a 9-goal advantage slip away and whether the team could have chewed up the clock to deprive the Vixens of an opportunity to go to the post in the dying seconds. The pattern across the last two weeks for the Magpies has been working with a solid starting seven with minimal changes that helps to build confidence that the team on the court to ride out any storm.

Although shattering, this will be a crucial learning opportunity on how to retain the lead and will bode them well as they make their way into the unchartered finals territory. It is also another great example of the substantive influence the supershot has on the results of a game.

Nicole Richardson said, “It is really important to get win on the board early. I spoke to our three that didn’t get on the court last week. I make change where I think we are falling down in an area or running out of legs, but I think the seven I had on court have been able to run the game out. In a tight game like that, it is risk versus reward.”

“We were able to play another exciting and entertaining brand of netball off the back of last week’”

“Our key learning out of this game is when we scored the last goal to go one goal up, could we have played around with the ball and given them [Vixens] less time to score?”

Speaking post match, Vixens coach Simone McKinnis said, “It was an incredible finish, absolutely love the fight and the never give up attitude of the group.”

“We were chasing from the word go so we will have to have a look at that start and progress throughout the game.”

“I am really happy she [Jo Weston] has had that first game. After not being in it for so long, that first game back can be a big first step.” (Simone)

 

Shooting stats 

Magpies
Shimona Nelson 47/48 (98%)
Sophie Garbin 8/9 (89%)

Vixens
Mwai Kumwenda 31/35 (89%)
Kiera Austin 21/23 (91%)

MVP – Mwai Kumwenda

Molly Jovic fights for the ball. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

Molly Jovic fights for the ball. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

 

Mwai Kumwenda celebrates with teammates after taking the match winning shot. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

Mwai Kumwenda celebrates with teammates after taking the match winning shot. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

 

Elated Melbourne Vixens. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

Melbourne Vixens came back from a 9 goal deficit to win the match. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

 

Kelsey Browne in disbelief. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

Kelsey Browne in disbelief. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

 

Nicole RichardsonImage: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun

A pumped up Nicole Richardson before the incident. Image: Shaun Sharp | Moments by Shaun


 

Quotes Corner

Queensland Firebirds 

Emily Moore 

Asked on how she felt stepping on court for her second ever SSN match, “It was just as exciting running out this week in another home game. It’s really special pulling on this purple dress as the club has such a rich history, it’s a real honour to put this dress on.” 

Rebecca Bulley 

On the change of putting Bakewell-Doran back in goal keeper, “I’m really proud of Rubes, remembering this is only her second season of SSN, it’s great what she achieved in one season, and tonight seeing her move back into goal keeper, showing she can play multiple positions, yeah I’m really happy with her and also her leadership she’s the one driving everyone around her.” 


 

Ladder

Teams/points/%

Lightning / 8 / 127.76
Fever / 8 / 101.49
Thunderbirds / 6 / 121.74
Magpies / 4 / 105.60

Vixens / 4 / 100
Swifts / 2 / 91.67
Giants / 0 / 87.86
Firebirds / 0 / 79.84 

Next Round

All matches will be shown live on Fox Sport and Kayo Sports. Sunday matches will be available on Kayo Freebies for those who don’t have a subscription

Saturday 1 April 5pm AEDT – Swifts v Firebirds – Ken Rosewall Arena
Saturday 1 April 7pm AEDT – Lightning v Thunderbirds – UniSC Arena (6pm local time)
Sunday 2 April 2pm AEST * – Fever v Magpies – RAC Arena (12pm local time)
Sunday 2 April 4pm AEST * – Vixens v GIANTS  – John Cain Arena

* Daylight saving ends this weekend.

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