Pulse lacking attack talent
Stronger, better, faster was the marketing slogan for the Central Pulse this year.
It might have to be rolled out again in 2013 because, in the estimation of coach Robyn Broughton, the buzzwords were not delivered on this time round.
Broughton continues to sound enthusiastic about returning to the Pulse next year, as long as she can be convinced that the team and the board are as serious as her about winning.
The Pulse’s five-win, eight-loss record was their best in five trans-Tasman netball league seasons, but still wasn’t enough to truly impress Broughton. There were too many capitulations, like Sunday’s to the West Coast Fever, for the coach to be satisfied with her team’s efforts.
‘‘I’m pretty hard-nosed when I’m a coach and I expect results,’’ Broughton said.
‘‘So either you want it and want it big time and you’re prepared to go the extra mile to get it, or you don’t. Not so much in terms of attitude, I just wonder about their ability.’’
Broughton has one part of the court firmly in mind when she says that. Both in terms of Sunday and the season.
‘‘To be frank, we lost it down in our attack end [against the Fever],’’ she said. ‘‘You can see that, I don’t have to say it, do I?’’
She praised goal shoot Caitlin Thwaites’ ‘‘wonderful stats’’ of 85.7 per cent for the season ‘‘but when the really important ones come, the turnover ones come, they’re the ones we seem to miss’’.
Broughton added that she was disappointed by goal attack Paula Griffin, but felt the team lacked other shooters to turn to.
‘‘You need a really, really strong bench for the shooting end. It’s very hard to relieve those two and you need a really hard-nosed approach to it on attack and constant physical presence on attack, as well as defence.’’
The frustration for Broughton is that in Joline Henry, Katrina Grant and Te Huinga Reo SelbyRickit, she knows she has a defensive trio who are the envy of the league.
‘‘Katrina had an outstanding game on Sunday – outstanding – and it’s really hard for her to look down the court and see what’s happening to that ball,’’ she said.