Steel, Pulse share spoils
When there is this much at stake, no-one expects the netball to be pretty.
There was no danger of that on Sunday at Arena Manawatu as the Central Pulse and the Southern Steel scrapped out a 55-55 draw which leaves both teams’ seasons still in the balance.
As they did in Dunedin a fortnight ago when they won by a goal on the last play, the Steel fought back from a near impossible position to give themselves a chance heading into the final two rounds thanks to a late cameo from goal attack Brooke Leaver.
After two hours of netball, only one goal separated the two teams, with the Steel holding onto third place in the New Zealand conference courtesy of a better goal percentage.
The Pulse are an underperforming team desperate to end their Robyn Broughon era with a place in the post-season, while the Steel are a team on the rise equally desperate to get their franchise into the playoffs for the first time since their own Broughton era.
The Pulse went hard at the ball throughout, eager to cut off posession before it could land in the hands of the Steel’s Jhaniele Fowler-Reid.
It turned into a game of miniruns as both teams found it hard to control the ball, or the momentum of the game.
The Pulse earned a 15-14 lead at the end of the first quarter after falling behind early.
The Steel started without defender Storm Purvis, who warmed up with the team despite the ankle injury which saw her miss last week’s loss to the Magic, with Jane Watson deputising for her for a second straight week.
The Steel looked best when they were able to make decisive movements down the court and get the ball into Fowler-Reid’s hands early, but there was not shortage 15-14, 28-29, 43-41, 55-55.
Pulse: Ameliaranne Wells 35/41; Jodi Brown 20/22. Steel: Jhaniele Fowler-Reid 40/46; Te Paea SelbyRickit 12/16; Brooke Leaver 3/3. of pressure coming from Liana Leota and Joline Henry in her 100th game.
Henry was to the fore at the start of the second quarter as the Pulse looked to get some clear air but an obstruction call on Jodi Brown sparked a Steel run which saw them score five goals in a row.
Ameliaranne Wells and Brown were providing a potent shooting combination for the Pulse, but it was a Wells miss from under the net which Phoenix Karaka gobbled up as the Steel moved out to 27-22.
The Pulse were throwing an enormous amount of ball away, too much considering the sort of personnel they have available to them, but just when it looked like the Steel were putting a clamp on the game, Gina Crampton was called for breaking and the Pulse were good enough to score the last four goals of the half to trail by just one goal at the break.
Katrina Grant was having trouble with a hip and swapped from goal defence to goal keep in the second quarter, with Pulse coach Broughton swapping Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit for Ama Agbeze after halftime.
A timely Leota intercept saw the Pulse take a 43-41 lead into the final quarter.
The quarter was one the Steel would like to have again, another example of a young team unable to lift their game when the situation demanded.
The Pulse scored six goals in a row to seize the momentum and from that point it was their game to lose.
Take your pick of which team has the better run to the end of the regular season.
The Steel will host the Mystics next weekend and then have the red-hot Firebirds away in the final round.
The Pulse have games, against the Thunderbirds.
In other results, the Firebirds continue to lead the Australian conference after a 58-42 win over the Thunderbirds.
The Vixens beat the Fever 56-48, while the Swifts continued the Tactix winless season with a 68-49 victory in Sydney. two away Magic and