Thomson in semi upset
THOMSON has thrown down the challenge to Werribee Centrals, upsetting the GDFL netball powerhouse in Saturday’s second semi-final to earn a grand final berth.
The Tigers held on to win 38-37 in one of the matches of the season, setting up the win with a brilliant second quarter that turned the match on its head.
A determined and disciplined team effort was the catalyst for the win.
The early ticket into this year’s big dance was achieved through a full court, regimented defence that kept the premiership favourites under constant pressure.
The champs were out of the blocks early and cruised to a five-goal quarter-time lead, but the Tigers took full advantage of the first break to reassess their plans.
Thomson coach Shannyn Leach and the injured Bridgitte Burns quickly restored belief into the group and the players produced a stunning second quarter to take a two-goal lead into the long break.
The second half was a dogged arm-wrestle, with Werribee’s teenage sensation Tash Dimkovski and her direct opponent in the centre, SarahJane Ross, fighting hard to win the ascendancy for their team.
Werribee faces a preliminary final showdown with Bannockburn, which outlasted a gutsy East Geelong in a storm-delayed match at St Albans yesterday.
East stayed in touch during the first quarter, but Bannockburn settled quickly into their game during the second quarter and the Eagles lack of depth started to show. They struggled to create space in the mid court and Celeste De Munari and Alana Nicol were constantly picking off wayward passes.
Sarah Fisher teamed superbly with Duncan to give the Tigers an eight-goal break at half-time. East coach Justine Radford instructed her players to relax and have some fun in the second half and the release of shooter Shannon Pietsch to goal attack created some fluency in attack. East outscored the Tigers in the third quarter, but weight of numbers finally took its toll and the Tigers pulled away to a 47-33 goal win.