NS Scoreboard: SSN Round 14 2024

NS Scoreboard: SSN Round 14 2024

Writers: Ian Harkin, Georgia Doyle, Elly McNerney, Katrina Nissen 

Photographers: Kylie de Souza, Clinton Bradbury, May Bailey, Hannah Howard

Cover Image: Hannah Howard | On the Ball Media

Results

Melbourne Vixens 62 def Queensland Firebirds 52

West Coast Fever 76 def Melbourne Mavericks 57

NSW Swifts 72 def GIANTS Netball 71

Adelaide Thunderbirds 64 def Sunshine Coast Lightning 62

 

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Milestones

Kim Ravaillion (Firebirds) played her 157th and final National League match

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Injuries

Lauren Frew left the court during the first quarter with an ankle injury.

Cara Koenen left the court for a short time after an injury to her arm.

Reilley Batcheldor (knee) was left out of the Lightning side as a precaution. Hopeful to be back next week.  

Lara Dunkley took a nasty spill which saw her leave the court for a quarter. Images: Kylie de Souza | Captured by Kylie

 

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LET’S TALK ABOUT:

News of the Week

The regular season of Suncorp Super Netball came to a dramatic conclusion in Round 14, with the order of the top four and therefore next week’s semi-final schedule not known until the final few seconds of the very last game. In a game that could have gone either way, Thunderbirds won 64-62 against Lightning to take them to the top of the ladder. A loss in that game would have seen them drop to third and miss out on the double chance. The top four finished this way:

1 Adelaide Thunderbirds
2 Melbourne Vixens
3 West Coast Fever
4 Sunshine Coast Lightning

 

 

Record crowds continue to flock to netball in 2024. Round 14 saw three sell-outs in Brisbane, Sydney, and Adelaide. The crowd of 9,248 in Adelaide was a record for Super Netball in that city. Meanwhile, Perth recorded its largest ever crowd for a regular season game (11,841). In all, there were 34,726 people at the four games which smashes the previous round attendance record set earlier in the season by more than 7,000.

And the big crowds are set to continue in the finals. Adelaide Entertainment Centre is unavailable next week, but the Thunderbirds will now host the major semi final at Adelaide 36ers Arena which has a capacity of around 8,000. The minor semi final will be played at RAC Arena in Perth, and given the size of crowds that have attended Fever games all season, it would seem likely that a crowd of 13,000+ will be there to cheer on the Fever next week. 

 

Super Netball Reserves:

Swifts 59 def GIANTS 43

This is the last match in this series. The initiative of Super Netball Reserves was basically a trial run this season for players, coaches, and umpires to gain more experience. We would love to see a fully-fledged Reserves competition introduced next year, with hopefully some streaming coverage and definitely more promotion. A lot of people would not have known these games were even on. 

 

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The Rookies

Temporary replacement player Uneeq Palavi put her hand up for a full time Super Netball contract in the Swifts final game. Palavi was a force in the Swifts one goal win over the Giants, especially in that final quarter. The 23-year-old was always an option for the Swifts with that strong hold and take proving to be a challenge for Giants defenders. Palavi finished the match with 43/45 goals including the match-winner, shooting at 96 percent. 

 

 

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The shooting circle

 

Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard just carries on each week with yet another dominant display for Fever. She shot 68/69 in round 14 against Mavericks and was in total control. However, there was a change in the goal attack position. Shanice Beckford started the game as usual, but when replaced, it wasn’t Olivia Wilkinson that came on, but instead Alice Teague-Neeld switched from wing attack to the circle. This was just the second time this year that she has played goal attack. Acting mainly as a feeder, Teague-Neeld also scored two super shots in the last quarter as Fever tried in vain to boost their percentage above Vixens’. She played well in her 30 minutes at goal attack and it allowed Kelsey Browne to come on in her preferred position of wing attack for the second half. 

 

 

 

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The midcourt

 

Hannah Mundy was back for the Vixens in their clash with the Firebirds. Mundy went straight into the starting lineup at wing attack. This was an important pointer as the team looks towards the finals. Rookie Zara Walters had been super impressive the previous week, but this indicates that Mundy is still number one in the pecking order there. As usual, Kate Moloney was the steadying force at centre, and Jo Weston did a great job at wing defence. Kate Eddy has recently returned to the team, and it must be reassuring to Simone McKinnis to know that she has so many options. 

 

 

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The defenders

 

The trend of shifting a goal defence out to wing defence was more prevalent than ever in Round 14, with at least one team per match trying the tactic to add extra height and longer arms for feeders to contend with. The Vixens, Fever and Swifts have been the most practiced with this move as they have done it a lot this season. But we also saw the Lightning utilise Tara Hinchliffe and the familiar move of Latty Wilson in wing defence during Sunday’s last match. By far, the Vixens and Fever have had the most success with Jo Weston and Sunday Aryang in wing defence. This familiarity with playing across two positions bodes well for the national team.

 

 

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Tactics

 

The first two games of the round saw Vixens and Fever playing both for wins and also for a percentage boost to try to finish above one another on the table. Vixens had the advantage of being ahead going into the round, while Fever had the advantage of playing second and knowing roughly what they had to do. Vixens edged ahead of Firebirds in the first half of their match, and they had a choice of whether to go for super shots in the second half to try to boost their score, or to play it safe. They chose the latter. 

In all, Vixens, through Kiera Austin, had just three unsuccessful two-point attempts for the whole game, and two of those came in the first quarter. Vixens were undoubtedly helped by the Firebirds’ poor shooting percentage which kept giving them possession back. It must have been tempting to go for super shots, especially when seeing Firebirds landing some of their own. Instead, they decided the safest play was to continually “take the one” and not risk giving up their advantage. 

 

 

On to the second game, and again Fever, despite needing a hefty margin, played it safe for three quarters as they battled a gallant Mavericks team. The scoreline at halftime was only 34-30, so at that stage, the first concern was just getting the victory. It was only after establishing a good lead in the third quarter that they freed themselves up somewhat. After not attempting a super shot for three quarters, they had five attempts in the last power five as they made a last ditch unsuccessful attempt to reach the 24-goal margin they needed.

 

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Stats summary of the H&A season

 

Now that the home and away season has come to an end, it’s a good time to look at which teams have been doing well in some of the major statistical categories. And as we can see, Fever dominates the attacking stats and Thunderbirds dominate the defensive stats.

 

Goals/Attempts:
Fever – 946/1053 (89.8%)
Lightning – 871/1028 (84.7%)
Vixens – 831/992 (83.8%)
Thunderbirds – 816/975 (83.7%)
Firebirds – 776/969 (80.1%)
Mavericks – 745/863 (86.3%)
Swifts – 726/891 (81.5%)
Giants – 725/881 (82.3%)

Most goals: Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard (Fever) – 813/846 (96.1%)

Super Shots/Attempts:
Swifts – 130/229 (56.8%)
Giants – 128/225 (56.9%)
Firebirds – 102/191 (53.4%)
Lightning – 86/144 (59.7%)
Vixens – 86/159 (54.1%)
Mavericks – 84/140 (60.0%)
Fever – 60/122 (49.2%)
Thunderbirds – 33/65 (50.8%)

Most super shots: Helen Housby (Swifts) – 73/114 (64.0%)

Feeds With An Attempt:
Fever – 986
Lightning – 949
Firebirds – 896
Vixens – 895
Thunderbirds – 860
Swifts – 817
Mavericks – 799
Giants – 796

 Most feeds with an attempt: Liz Watson (Lightning) – 428

 

 

Possession Gains:
Thunderbirds – 248
Vixens – 181
Lightning – 177
Fever – 169
Firebirds – 157
Giants – 152
Swifts – 146
Mavericks – 145

Most possession gains: Shamera Sterling-Humphrey (Thunderbirds) – 108

Intercepts:
Thunderbirds – 123
Vixens – 88
Giants – 78
Lightning – 76
Fever – 69
Mavericks – 69
Firebirds – 67
Swifts – 60

Most intercepts: Shamera Sterling-Humphrey (Thunderbirds) – 44

 

 

Deflections With Gain:
Thunderbirds – 62
Lightning – 56
Mavericks – 48
Firebirds – 44
Swifts – 44
Vixens – 44
Fever – 41
Giants – 38

Most deflections with gain: Latanya Wilson (Thunderbirds) – 23

General Play Turnovers:
Fever – 219
Lightning – 223
Vixens – 249
Swifts – 263
Firebirds – 268
Mavericks – 274
Thunderbirds – 285
Giants – 301

Most general play turnovers: Sophie Dwyer (Giants) – 78

Total Turnovers:
Fever – 256
Lightning – 303
Vixens – 316
Thunderbirds – 341
Mavericks – 342
Swifts – 345
Firebirds – 374
Giants – 386

Most total turnovers: Sophie Dwyer (Giants) – 117

 

 

Penalties:
Thunderbirds – 691
Lightning – 730
Fever – 733
Giants – 741
Firebirds – 810
Vixens – 833
Mavericks – 848
Swifts – 867

Most penalties: Maddy Turner (Swifts) – 224

 

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The games

 

Firebirds v Vixens 

Vixens secured themselves a top two finish, and a crucial second chance at the Grand Final in the 52-62 defeat of Firebirds. Riding high on the emotion of Kim Ravaillion’s final game, the Firebirds were never able to click out of first year, as their attacking end in particular struggled to connect, or find much accuracy at the post. Ravaillion started on the bench, playing 20 minutes across the game at wing defence and centre, and while it was a result she’d rather forget, she will always be remembered for her illustrious career. The Vixens also struggled to hit full pace, as they had their full 10 at their disposal for only the second time this season, and first time since Round 3. Their defence end continues to wreak havoc for opposition, with seamless transitions as their players shift across various positions – finishing with 14 gains between them. Kiera Austin earned MVP, for her 24/29 goals plus 16 centre pass receives and two pickups. Lara Dunkley was the stand out for the Firebirds, tasked with overcoming the rangy arms of Jo Weston, she finished with 33 feeds, two deflections and no turnovers for her 45 minutes at wing attack. 

 

 

 

 

Fever v Mavericks 

Fever fell just short of the chance to contest the major semi final, with their 76-57 win over the Mavericks five goals short of the margin needed to boost their percentage above that of the Vixens. The physical battle was closely contested for the first 30 minutes, but flew open in the third quarter after Dan Ryan pulled a raft of changes that included Alice Teague-Neeld in goal attack for only the second time this season. The masterstroke saw Fever outscore Mavericks 22-13 in the quarter which gave them an unassailable lead. Mavericks’ lack of height in defence continues to plague them, as they failed to collect a rebound on any of Fever’s five missed shots, while their shooters were also unable to collect a rebound from any of their 14 missed shots. Gabby Sinclair continues to be a game changer for Mavericks, switching up the attacking dynamic and freeing up more space while also providing a super shot threat that forced the Fever defence to split. Kadie-Ann Dehaney continues her career best season, playing the full 60 minutes for five gains and one deflection and Jhaniele Fowler-Nembard carries on her ethereal form with an MVP performance of 68/69 with one super shot. 

 

 

 

Giants v Swifts

In an exciting derby battle at Ken Rosewall Arena, Swifts retained the Carole Sykes Trophy with a 72-71 win, handing rivals Giants their first wooden spoon in the process. For much of the game it looked as if it would be Swifts finishing with that unwanted prize, as the Giants were on top. With Jamie-Lee Price and Maddie Hay controlling the midcourt well, they led by as much as seven goals. It was in the last quarter when things came undone somewhat for the Giants. Swifts pounced to take the lead, then nervously held on as Giants landed three super shots in quick succession. It was left to goal shooter Uneeq Palavi, to score the winning goal in the final seconds. Helen Housby was adjudged MVP after what was possibly her best game of the season. It was the Housby of old, dominating the attack end for Swifts, taking the responsibility on her shoulders and teaming up beautifully with Palavi. The young Tongan international must surely have gone close to sealing a spot in next year’s competition with her performance in the last four rounds. Paige Hadley was consistently good for Swifts throughout the match. 

 

 

 

 

Thunderbirds v Lightning

Thunderbirds have taken out the Super Netball minor premiership for 2024 after a thrilling 64-62 victory over Lightning in Adelaide. Coming into the match, the home team knew what was required. Margins didn’t matter, they simply needed a win. After an even start, Lightning shooter Cara Koenen left the court for a short time with an injury, and Thunderbirds piled on seven straight goals in her absence to lead 35-29 at half time. Playing with the newfound attacking potency of recent weeks, Thunderbirds stretched that lead to 10 midway through the third quarter. It was then that Lightning captain Steph Fretwell imposed herself on the game. With the support of Leesa Mi Mi in the midcourt, the visitors narrowed the gap and turned the game into a goal for goal encounter. With Fretwell landing nine super shots, it took all of Thunderbirds’ winning experience of the past two seasons to dig deep and get the win. Once again, the defence was strong, led by Shamera Sterling-Humphrey and Latanya Wilson, while Tayla Williams continued her tremendous form in the midcourt. But the MVP for the match was Georgie Horjus who put in another dominant attacking performance. After an early injury to Lauren Frew, Horjus played almost a full game at goal attack, fed Romelda Aiken-George superbly, and landed four crucial super shots.

 

 

Former teammates Laura Scherian and Charlie Bell embrace post match in Adelaide. Image Hannah Howard/On the Ball Media

 

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Final Ladder

Team / Pld / Pts / %

1 . THUNDERBIRDS . 14 . 44 . 121.1
2 . VIXENS . 14 . 44 . 111.6
3 . FEVER . 14 . 44 . 111.0
4 . LIGHTNING . 14 . 24 . 101.4
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5 . MAVERICKS . 14 . 24 . 90.2
6.  SWIFTS. 14 . 16 . 92.7
7 . FIREBIRDS 14. 16. 90.5
8.  GIANTS . 14 . 12 . 88.9

 

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Next Week

MAJOR SEMI-FINALl:
Sat Jul 20: 5pm – THUNDERBIRDS v VIXENS (4:30pm local time)

MINOR SEMI-FINAL:
Sun Jul 21: 2pm – FEVER v LIGHTNING (12pm local time)