NETBALL - Marist Old Girls on target for netball title

Marist Old Girls maintained their title favourites status when securing a championship final berth with a 38-25 win over Fideliter in Whangarei premier netball on Saturday.
The sides traded early goals and Fideliter were in touch as Old Girls took a one-point lead into the second quarter.
Fideliter were determined to keep in touch with sterling efforts from their defensive duo of Loren Eagle and Megan Henderson.
Henderson was especially busy, pulling of timely intercepts and showing impressive turns of speed in the wet.
Eagle organised her defensive line to good effect from goal keep and created several bonus possessions for her side.
This possession wasn't always utilised, thanks mainly to the efforts of Old Girls' defensive line, which was equally disruptive to the Fideliter attack.
Katie Snyman showed her experience at the back, reading the play well and testing the Fideliter shooters throughout the match.
In the midcourt, a tight battle raged with Ursula Albrecht doing a power of work at centre. She teamed up well with Emma Hearsey at wing attack while Kimberley Biggs had another busy game at wing defence.
In the third quarter, the Old Girls attack took a step up with goal attack Sophie Tua showing some nice touches Nicky Taylor in goal shoot.
During the quarter, Old Girls built momentum and capitalised on a growing Fideliter error rate.
The errors counted against Fideliter on the score sheet. Old Girls, who have regularly punished sides throughout the season for errors, were able to bank a good win and earn a bye next week.
Fideliter have to battle their way into the remaining finals berth.
Whangarei Old Boys made it two wins in two weeks over Manawanui.
A heart-stopping 37-35 victory earned the right to challenge for the final.
A huge battle ensued from the outset with both sides clearly willing to put their bodies on the line despite the weather.
There was an interesting match-up in the midcourt with Old Boys centre Jo Davis-Cooper and Manawanui's Trudi Smith jostling for position and working hard through court for possession.
The weather contributed to several uncharacteristic errors from both sides, with the advantage shifting several times throughout the first half .
Manawanui led 20-18 heading into the final stanzas.
There was another big match from the versatile Rowena Davis-Cooper, who offered several defensive options for Old Boys.
Manawanui's experienced shooting line-up of Janita Andrews and Donna Stratford had sure hands on attack and tested Old Boys' patience.
A slight change in fortunes had Old Boys peg back the advantage and it was 27-all heading into the final period.
With both experience and skill on show throughout, Manawanui held the advantage early but an injury time-out allowed Old Boys to refocus. They scored six consecutive goals and took a hard-fought victory.
Marist 1 took a comfortable victory, 48-31, over Whangarei Girls High School in a battle to avoid the bottom placings.
Marist were clear favourites, but wary of a school side more than able to produce an upset. Marist was dominant early and maintained the upper hand throughout the match.
WGHS centre Tara Wells had a great game on defence and attack and the reliable Emma Smith gained loads of possession from goal defence. Both worked tirelessly throughout the match but were unable to spark a comeback against a determined Marist.
Too many little errors cost the schoolgirls, with Marist confident through court and stoic in defence. The usually accurate WGHS shooters were off the mark. Marist, determined to climb out of the bottom-two, never allowed WGHS any confidence and cruised to victory.
Next week, the playoffs continue when Fideliter face Whangarei Old Boys for the remaining finals berth, and Manawanui play Marist 1 for the remaining spot in the top 4. Marist Old Girls and Whangarei Girls High School have a bye.