Spirited Pulse fail to stop Steel
The Southern Steel have seen off a spirited Central Pulse to secure their sixth win of the season.
The Steel were top of the New Zealand conference of the trans-Tasman netball league coming into the match at TSB Bank Arena last night, but they needed all their skill and composure to beat the last-placed Pulse 67-63.
It was a creditable performance from the Pulse, as they looked a team much better than their one-win record suggests.
They were also vastly improved from when they lost by 13 goals to the Steel on April 24. They pressured the Steel into frequent errors and their shooting was as good as you could hope for.
Ameliaranne Wells was particularly impressive shooting from long range as she shot 26/28, while wing attack Chelsea Locke had a hand in everything positive for the Pulse.
The Pulse were aided by an off night from Steel goal attack Te Paea Selby-Ricki, who shot 13/21. If she converted even half of those misses it would have been a more comfortable night for her team-mates.
Her giant Jamaican shooting partner, Jhaniele FowlerReid, was outstanding by comparison, nailing 54/55 of her goals.
Steel wing attack Gina Crampton was also impressive, earning the MVP for the match based on her 39 feeds and 21 goal assists.
Despite the loss, Pulse captain Katrina Grant was happy with her team’s performance.
‘‘We were right in it up until the last four or five minutes. I’m really proud of my girls, I thought they played really, really well,’’ Grant said.
‘‘To be able to turn it around from the last time we played the Steel, is very good for us. We’ve been working really hard and not been able to click the last few weeks, but I think the girls played well – unfortunately it didn’t mean we won though.’’
The Pulse matched the Steel well in the first quarter to be down just 18-17 and could have been leading if they didn’t throw away good turnover ball.
Pulse goal keep Phoenix Karaka had two intercepts and one deflection as she started well in the unenviable task of marking Fowler-Reid.
She switched positions with Pulse captain Katrina Grant into goal defence, as Claire Kersten came on at wing defence for Jacinta Messer to start the second quarter.
It was a switch the Pulse would make frequently in the game, which Grant said was to keep Steel attackers guessing.
‘‘Phoenix I probably haven’t clicked as well as we would’ve liked and we think that if we switch it up we’ll make the shooters think a lot more about what we’re doing and I think it is working in our favour.’’
That seemed to work wonders in the second quarter, as the Pulse started with an 11-6 run to grab a four-goal lead.
The Steel seemed flustered and gave away possession cheaply again, but they are unbeaten for a reason and charged back to regain their one-goal lead 33-32 at halftime.
The Steel started the second half well, forcing the Pulse’s Elias Scheres into a centre pass error which helped them establish a four-goal buffer.
The Pulse have been guilty of letting momentum shifts affect them in recent games, but they did not let that happen this time and battled back to again be within one goal at three-quarter time.
There were errant passes from both teams to start the fourth quarter as the nerves of a close game set in.
But the Steel showed why they are top of the New Zealand conference as they won a couple of crucial turnovers to pull away to a four-goal lead midway through the quarter, which they held onto for the win. Vito and Chris Eves are all back in the selection mix, having been withdrawn from consideration for the Reds game after missing a curfew in Durban the previous week.
Given their quality and standing, you imagine Jane, Vito and the two Saveas would all be rushed straight into the side
‘‘You’re going to have to speak to Boydy [head coach Chris Boyd] about that one but, nah, I think you’d expect those guys to come back in. They’ve served their time and all is forgiven,’’ Plumtree said.
Whoever plays, it must be with some intent. There have been occasions when the Hurricanes were marginally off their game mentally, which has made a big difference to the performance and end result.
It rarely takes Plumtree long to work out if it’s going to be a good game for the Hurricanes or a notso-good one. On their recent South African trip, for instance, there was a marked difference in the physicality of the 50-17 win over the Lions and the next week’s 32-15 loss to the Sharks.
‘‘We’ve spoken about that level of consistency that we were after [which] we provided last year and this year we haven’t done that,’’ he said.
‘‘There’s probably a couple of reasons why but, at the end of the day, there are a couple of indicators in our game that if the boys don’t go into with the right attitude we lose and one of them’s in our defence.
‘‘When we’re physical at the breakdown, when our defence operates, that’s when we’re at our best and our most confident as well, so certainly Friday night we have to bring that.’’
The quality of opposition means room for error is minimal.
The Hurricanes have met the Highlanders already this season, losing 17-16 in a bruising encounter at Dunedin’s Forsyth Barr Stadium. To’omaga-Allen