Steel roll champions while Stars remain unbeaten
The Southern Steel delivered a well-crafted 56-52 national netball premiership win over the Central Pulse in Invercargill on Sunday.
The smart attacking play and defensive abilities of Tiana Metuarau came back to haunt her old team as she played a key role in helping shut down a late-charging Pulse in the final quarter.
The Steel led 39-37 at the three-quarter mark, and Metuarau was a strong presence in an exciting match.
The Steel had led 14-10 after 15 minutes, and 29-22 at halftime, but the Pulse clawed their way back with a forceful third quarter.
A couple of early intercepts from defender Taneisha Fifita turned momentum the Steel’s way, the home side seamless with their delivery through court and into the safe hands of key shooter George Fisher.
In comparison, the Pulse struggled with their
connections on attack, quickly falling behind as the Steel did a fine job in shutting the supply of ball to their main scorer, Aliyah Dunn.
Fisher delivered 48 from 52 of her shots on goal, while Metuarau backed up her savvy court play with eight from eight.
In the later game, the Northern Stars maintained their unbeaten start to the season after completing a hardfought 55-51 win over the Magic in Tauranga.
After being in control for three-quarters of the match, the Stars faced a testing final 15 minutes before making it three-from-three.
The Stars looked well in control at 18-13 ahead after 15 minutes, and 33-25 at halftime but the Magic levelled the third quarter at 13-13, then took the fourth 13-9.
Stars shooter Maia Wilson was a little off song in sinking 42 from 53, while goal attack Jamie Hume managed 13 from 21, the pair under constant pressure from circle defenders Erana Mikaere and Temalisi Fakahokotau.
But the volume of possession finding its way into the circle eventually proved crucial.
So while Khiarna Williams (20 from 21), Caitlin Bassett (21/23) and Chiara Semple (10/13) impressed with their accuracy, they just weren’t able to get enough ball.