KEY POINTS:
There are no maroon banners fluttering from streetlamps, no giant billboards of Temepara George bounding mid-air, or Vili Davu slapping the ball in satisfaction.
Instead, Force coach Yvonne Willering will do everything to keep her players cocooned from the hype surrounding the grand final of the National Bank Cup on Friday night - to save them from themselves.
The Force will approach their last chance to win their only national title with a degree of indifference to the emotional and historical significance of this very last game.
"We will try to go into the game as low-key as possible," Willering said.
"The more wound up this team gets, the worse they are. So basically, we're focusing on it as another game against the Sting."
It means a run-of-the-mill run up to the game - training before going into camp on the eve of the match.
"I enjoy meeting up with the players at trainings, so we're not doing anything in isolation. That way, everyone keeps everyone in check," Willering said. "Basically we will stay within ourselves, drawing strength from each other. We're not getting involved in that outside stuff."
Willering broke from tradition and gave the Force a weekend off, rather than playing a practice game against New Zealand players as is custom.
"We knew it would just be a practice game anyway. Hopefully the players have come back refreshed from the rest," she said.
Davu returned to Auckland yesterday after a week coaching in Fiji, but Willering kept her up to speed with the result of the Sting-Magic spectacular.
"Knowing our opponent now hasn't changed our approach to the game," Willering said. "Neither of us will make big changes - it's just a matter of fine tuning. Our fine tuning is no unforced errors and nailing the shots - without a doubt, that lifts the rest of the team."
Willering is also confident she has cards up her sleeve. There are player combinations she hasn't used in the two victories over the Sting this year - in particular the more mobile shooting blend of Brigette Tapene and Megan Dehn. While the Force's most accurate shooter, Catherine Latu, has had stellar performances against the Sting this season, she is still getting treatment for a back injury.
There is colossal anticipation in the deep South for what could be the Sting's seventh NBC title: it is the Sting's 10th final from 10, and coach Robyn Broughton's 100th game at their helm. But Broughton is trying to stick to routine this week too - still teaching her PE classes at Verdon College, and running the Sting through regular trainings before flying to Auckland tomorrow.
"I'm not even going to mention last week's win to them," she said. "Players who aren't experienced can get caught up in the hype of it all, so we must be workmanlike about it."
