Netball: Harten hammers old team for Magic

Jo Harten of the Tactix. Photo / Sarah Ivey

The Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic shrugged off the loss of Irene van Dyk as her successor helped produce a resounding victory over the Mainland Tactix yesterday.

Jo Harten thrived against her former team, scoring 41 goals from 42 attempts to lead the Magic to a 70-46 win in Christchurch.

Harten was lured north to fill the considerable void left by the departure of van Dyk to the Pulse, and the Englishwoman showed her suitability with a dominant display.

Her 41 goals fell seven short of van Dyk's best during her Magic tenure, while the team total of 70 was two fewer than they managed in their record win over the Tactix in 2010.

The Magic are facing question marks over their credentials for the first time in the ANZ Championship, after losing Laura Langman along with van Dyk in the off-season.

And while they will face much tougher tests than this, last year's beaten semifinalists showed they may still have the talent to maintain their record of never finishing outside the competition's top four.

Mainland fans look set for another long season after finishing in the bottom two for four years running.

The Tactix actually led midway through the first quarter but it was all downhill from there, with the visitors ending the period with a 10-2 run to build a healthy seven-goal advantage.

Harten and goal attack Ellen Halpenny (29/32) were enjoying much more success than counterparts Mwai Kumwenda (29/30) and Sophia Fenwick (12/20), seeing the Magic double their advantage by halftime.

Leana de Bruin shook off an injury worry to her heavily-strapped left ankle to form a solid rearguard with Casey Kopua, in her first game as Magic captain, with the pair limiting the Tactix to 10 goals in the third quarter.

The Magic lead was an insurmountable 22 goals heading into the fourth, easing the foot slightly off the accelerator en-route to a comfortable win.

In today's games, the Steel host the Firebirds and the Mystics play the Vixens in Melbourne.