ARROWS FIRE INTO DECIDER

KARANA DEMOLISHED

AYC-FRIENDS Arrows booked themselves a spot in the Tasmanian Netball League grand final with an emphatic 70-33 win over Karana Flames.

After their shock loss last weekend against Northern Hawks, Arrows came out firing, crushing the young flames chances of grand final glory and sending a clear message to Hawks, who they will meet next weekend in Launceston.

Right from the first whistle Arrows showed their intentions with a break and strong offensive rebounding from shooter Sophie Gunn.

With the Karana attack end looking understandably nervous and tentative, Arrows forced them into mistakes in the goal circle with excellent defensive pressure, shooting out to an 11-4 lead.

Karana fought back with a few solid intercepts to defensive duo Bianca Hollingsworth and Zanna Jodlowska and settled in attack to be down 16-10 heading into the second quarter.

Arrows continued to trouble Karana’s attack end in the second quarter, forcing mistakes and gaining a 10-goal lead.

Karana managed to create chances defensively but continued to cough the ball up in attack, with Arrows centre Emily Sharp and wing attack Hayley Sansom feeding their goalies well despite the continued close attention of Jodlowska and Hollingsworth.

Arrows finished the quarter strongly taking a commanding a 34-19 lead into halftime.

Karana made changes to start the second half but just couldn’t settle, allowing Arrows to extend their lead.

Arrows continued to play a much more structured game with their relentless defensive pressure forcing Karana to turn the ball over. Strong defensive rebounding and intercepts to AJ and Zoe Gough meant Arrows could repel anything Karana threw at them, and Arrows extended their lead 52-24 heading into the last.

Arrows looked much more settled in defence, with AJ Gough’s athleticism allowing her to pick off multiple intercepts. And Gunn’s accurate shooting helped the side to the comprehensive 37goal win.

Arrows coach Andrew Jackson was satisfied with the result, praising his team’s improvements on last week’s game.

“Our connections between our attack end were much better,” Jackson said.

“The girls were fired up and defensively our hands over were much better.”

“We’re looking forward to Launceston and a second crack at Hawks next week”.

Karana coach Alicia Sargent, while disappointed with the loss, was pleased with how far her team had come during the year.

“Arrows came out firing and while we played well in patches, it wasn’t our best game for the year, and the experience of Arrows enabled them to capitalise on our errors,” Sargent said.

“For such a young team to finish third is a testament to their work ethic and desire to improve.”

In the under-19s, Arrows won a thriller in overtime against Cavaliers — 55-54. They will now meet Kingston Blues in the grand final.