Can anyone catch the in-form Pulse?
The Central Pulse machine rolls on, staying unbeaten with their eighth straight win of the season. Brendon Egan breaks down round eight of the ANZ Premiership.
Showdown for second
The Southern Steel could lose their grip on second spot with a loss to the Northern Stars tomorrow, the team who beat them in round one.
Expect the Steel and Stars to both be pretty grumpy for this one. The Stars were lethargic against a fired up Magic side on Monday, losing 53-42. They were slow to start, falling behind 17-7 after the opening term (shooting a dire 54 per cent in the first quarter) and were never able to recover from that.
It was the second straight double digit loss for the Stars, who had been the premiership’s most improved side over the first half of the season.
Steel players won’t be lining up to watch a replay of their second half effort against the Pulse from Wednesday. They were blown off the court 34-21 after halftime, losing the game 66-50 – their largest loss of 2019.
Magic find their mojo
It’s taken nine games, but the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic finally delivered the kind of netball they’re capable of.
The Magic, who had won just two of their first eight games, finally awoke from their slumber, knocking over the Stars on their home court in south Auckland.
While losing star import shooter Lenize Potgieter to the Steel over the off-season was a blow for the Magic, their sloppy play over the first half of the season had left many surprised.
It was a welcome win for Magic fans and you’d have to fancy their chances of making it two on the bounce against the struggling Tactix on Monday in Hamilton.
The end of the season can’t come soon enough for the Tactix, who have been hampered by injury and not been able to put it together consistently on either attack or defence for four quarters.
Can Nweke outwit Pulse pros?
Mystics’ schoolgirl shooting talent Grace Nweke has held her own against Silver Fern defenders Casey Kopua, Kelly Jury (both Magic) and Jane Watson of the Tactix.
We’ll learn a lot more about Nweke, who landed 48 from 52 against the Tactix in her last showing, when she faces the Pulse defensive duo of Katrina Rore and Sulu Fitzpatrick on Wednesday. Claire Kersten and Karin Burger are two of the best defensive midcourters in the competition, so the Mystics’ feeders won’t have it easy, trying to send passes into the 1.93m target of Nweke, the 17-year-old, who has been so impressive in her debut premiership campaign.
The Pulse are firing on all cylinders and it’s tough to foot it with them for a quarter, let alone 60 minutes of netball. They look in a different league to the other five sides and the Mystics have it all in front of them if they’re to cause the upset of the season.