Steel trip worthwhile

THE Southern Steel might not have notched up a win over the highlyrated Sunshine Coast Lightning, but coach Reinga Bloxham has hailed the preseason trip across the ditch a success.

The Lightning posted two solid wins over the southerners — 7549 on Friday night and 5644 yesterday afternoon.

‘‘We improved dramatically and I’m really proud of what they did out on court today,’’ Bloxham said.

‘‘We won the third quarter and drew the second half and that’s no mean feat against a team the calibre of the Lightning.’’

Lightning’s international stars include Silver Fern legend Laura Langman, Australian Diamonds shooters Caitlin Bassett and Stephanie Wood, South African defender Karla Mostert and England’s Geva Mentor.

‘‘They’ve got a lot of firepower and they will be exciting to watch this season,’’ Bloxham said.

‘‘Our players . . . really enjoyed matching up against them. They need that speed and intensity — absolutely thrive on it — and it was great to watch the individual battles going on.’’

While the Steel was without Silver Ferns Shannon Francois, Gina Crampton, Te Paea SelbyRickit and Jane Watson, Bloxham said the week would prove beneficial to the team’s ANZ Premiership campaign.

It was a valuable opportunity for training partner Ngawai Eyles and Netball South development squad members Sophie Erwood, Aliyah Dunn and Dani Gray to step into the Steel’s highperformance environment.

‘‘This trip was never about results for us, it was about development. Sixty percent of our team were Beko league players and this was a great opportunity for them,’’Bloxham said.

The Steel’s opening ANZ Premiership game is against the Northern Stars, in Hamilton, on March 26.