The Southern Steel and Central Pulse prepare to go head-to-head in the national league's grand final.
The 2018 ANZ Premiership grand final is set to tip off this afternoon with plenty on the line.
Defending champions, the Southern Steel, will contest their second consecutive Premiership final against the Central Pulse at Palmerston North's Fly Palmy Arena after securing their spot with a playoffs victory over the Mainland Tactix on Wednesday night.
Winning back-to-back ANZ Premiership titles is high on the wish list for loyal Steel captain and Southland netball legend, Wendy Frew, who will lead her side for the final time after announcing her retirement last month.
The 33-year-old will draw the curtain on her outstanding netball career after playing in 175 tests for the Southland side across 16 national-level campaigns.
The former Silver Fern's tenacious defence tactics, competitiveness, and leadership will play a key role in the Steel's fight to retain the title and reign as the Premiership's first back-to-back champions.
Wendy Frew will lead her Southern side for the final time. Photo / Getty
Today's grand final will mirror last season's match-up when the Southerners decisively defeated the Pulse 69–53 at Invercargill's Stadium Southland to claim the spoils in front of an adoring home stadium crowd.
With the key influence of Jamaican import goal shoot Jhaniele Fowler-Reid, the Steel remained unbeaten for the entire 2017 season.
But after falling short to the leading Pulse on the Premiership ladder this year, unable to retain the top spot, the Steel won't have the all-important home crowd advantage this time around.
Steel coach Reinga Bloxham said they knew how influential a home crowd could be but assured her side would take to the court fighting.
"We're going to go in there fighting and screaming," Bloxham said.
"We know that it's going to be tough to take them at home, we know what that home crowd advantage is like, but we're happy to step up and have a go at it."
The Pulse will inevitably be the favourites as they take to the court fuelled by their desire for redemption and led by their influential captain, Katrina Grant.
After a bitterly disappointing international season with the Silver Ferns, Grant made a resounding return to the court and has played in arguably her best form yet.
Grant will be eager to secure her side the much-deserved title after proving their strengths in a season glittered by stellar results.
The ANZ Premiership will be contested between the Southern Steel and Central Pulse. Photo / Getty
The Silver Ferns defender said she had full faith in her team to take the win and believed that their tenacious defence unit would be key to disrupting the Steel's play.
"We're always in your face and it's what we want, it's what we're doing, and it's how we play and we're hoping that's really going to get us over the line," Grant said.
"We know that we can play well against them, we just have to all play well at the same time and just want it and be hungry."
The Pulse have dominated the leaderboard since first taking to the top of the table in round one when the Pulse tipped off with a shock win that set the pace for a record-breaking six-game unbeaten run.
After suffering their first loss to the Northern Mystics in round six, minor cracks began to show, but the Wellington-based side soldiered on to close their regular season with a 55-48 redemption victory over their Northern rivals.
The Pulse will take to the court fresh from a two-week break since playing their final fixture on July 29, while the Steel have only had four days to recover.
None-the-less, the thrilling clash will be close and will inevitably come down to which side can hold their ground when it matters most.
