Netball: Pulse-ating win puts Mystics in top four

Anna Scarlett was in commanding form. Photo / Mark McKeown

If coach Debbie Fuller is right and her Northern Mystics team have failed to capitalise on turnovers so far this season, they put it right yesterday.

With Anna Scarlett and her fellow defenders like Jessica Mould in commanding form, the Central Pulse must have felt like they were trying to get past a combine harvester crossed with an octopus in their transtasman league game at Auckland's Trusts Stadium.

The pressure exerted on the Pulse shooters and, in particular, the pass to the shooters, told almost immediately. The visitors resorted to too many hopeful passes which Scarlett plucked out of the air. By halftime, the visitors had turned the ball over 13 times, plus four intercepts, and the Mystics scored off all of them.

The Pulse were made to work much harder through the midcourt too. In contrast, the Mystics (at their best) snapped the ball to receivers like machines, with the unflappable Catherine Latu making the net swish with no accompanying noise from the hoop almost without exception in the first half.

Latu shot a 100 per cent game, her fifth in eight games, underlining why the Silver Ferns are interested in her.

Interestingly, Megan Dehn started ahead of Maria Tutaia and the Mystics' depth was also demonstrated in Joline Henry also being on the bench.

At halftime, with Latu scoring at will, they led 32-22. the Pulse did mount a few mini-revivals, but the closest they came to the Mystics all match was a two-goal deficit at 7-5. The Mystics simply shifted up a gear when needed.

It was almost halftime before they missed a shot at goal and the story was in the shooting statistics - Mystics 97 per cent; the Pulse 69 per cent - at that stage.

The Pulse must have felt a bit ill when they looked up at halftime to see the stately Tutaia taking the court at goal attack. Although Tutaia missed her first shot, Latu claimed the rebound and the goal.

However, the Pulse made a much better fist of things in the third quarter, with Betsy Manu stiffening the defence as she put herself about.

The Mystics needed a win to claw their way back into the top-four. But, with turnovers almost the norm rather than the exception in the third quarter, the game lost its shape and the Mystics were unable to pile on the points as they made errors previously unseen.

As is always the way, the Pulse's passing and finishing then bucked up and they dragged themselves back, ending the quarter 43-37, clearly winning it.

But in the final period the turnovers returned and although the Pulse competed hard, it was a bridge too far.

The Mystics widened the gap with a strong finish. Superior defending, along with Grace Rasmussen and Temepara George in the midfield and Latu's finishing ability, spelled the difference.