Coach Taurua firm on a 'winning culture'

There's an edge to Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic's 2012 season-opening match against Southern Steel.

Magic should win but when you've changed just about everything to try and achieve what you'd fallen short of several times before, there's bound to be a bit of anxiety.

Coach Noeline Taurua can't wait to see if all the changes she's made ahead of this year's transTasman ANZ Championship will transform into winning form on the court. Finishing third last year, Magic are the only team in the competition to have made the semifinals in all four previous seasons - but they have yet to win the title.

Rotorua-based Taurua decided a new approach was needed and introduced a lot of changes and a brand new training regime, adding boxing and regular sessions with a sports psychologist in the hopes of creating a more winning culture within the side.

She's confident Magic will be going into this year's competition with a new attitude after a promising pre-season so is anxious to see that replicated in a "real game". She'll have to wait until Monday night when her side play in Invercargill - always a daunting prospect in front of a full house of netball-mad Steel supporters.

"I've been twiddling my fingers waiting for Monday ... when the gates open and everyone's away racing. I'm excited.

"It's that same old thing about being able to do only so much testing and now seeing if what we've been doing over the last three months works in real time."

The team culture in Magic has always been lauded as something special but Taurua says a great team culture won't win games.

"We're looking to build a winning and performance culture but we needed to learn how to do that and it's all about standards, consequences, self responsibility and not accepting anything less than the best."

With the bigger picture already in mind, Taurua wants to see a good, solid first-up performance against Steel, with whom her side have had a chequered history.

"It's always a toss of the coin regarding who wins when we go to Invercargill - it's never clearcut so we're going there this weekend expecting the same on Monday night," she says. "We're expecting a fierce competition and a bit of anxiety as both teams look to dominate.

"We've set our own targets as a team around everything we've been training towards with regards to standards, expectations etcetera and we want to be able to demonstrate that and feel that success. It's critical for us," the coach says.

This weekend's season-opening games

Adelaide Thunderbirds v NSW Swifts, Adelaide, Sat, 1.50pm

Queensland Firebirds v Melbourne Vixens, Brisbane, Sun, 2.20pm

Northern Mystics v Central Pulse, Auckland, Sun, 7.20pm

Waikato BOP Magic v Southern Steel, Invercargill, Mon, 7.40pm

West Coast Fever v Canterbury Tactix, Perth, Mon, 5.40pm