Fever 41
Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic held strong to take out a low-scoring trans-Tasman netball league match 42-41 over West Coast Fever in Perth last night.
In a game characterised by a huge defensive effort from both teams, the Magic maintained a narrow lead at the end of each quarter but had to hold out a storming finish from the Fever to secure the win.
Earlier, the visitors had roared away to an impressive start, jumping out to an early six-goal lead before the Fever settled and clawed back to trail 10-11 at the end of the first quarter.
The Fever lifted their defensive game as the second quarter progressed, and their pressure on the pass into the Magic circle paid dividends as they forced turnovers and edged out to a four-goal lead midway through the spell.
Wing defence Andrea Gilmore was particularly effective in disrupting the flow of Magic ball into shooters Irene van Dyk and Julianna Naoupu, who had enough work on their hands already with Susan Fuhrmann and English international Ama Agbeze in tenacious form.
Van Dyk was forced into a more mobile game, with the height of Fuhrmann making it difficult for her to post up or work the baseline.
Despite the best attentions of the long-reaching 1.96m Fuhrmann, the Silver Ferns stalwart shot with her customary accuracy, missing only one goal to finish the match at 96 percent.
While Naoupu was less effective at 74 percent, the 21-year-old worked hard in bringing the ball down and offered variation and options in the circle to keep the Fever defence guessing.
A six-goal surge late in the second quarter gave the Magic a 20-18 lead at halftime, and Fever coach Jane Searle was forced into changes.
Leah Shoard, who had been restricted to just one successful goal from five attempts in the 15-minute spell, shifted to wing attack while Ashlee Howard came on in an effort to ease the shooting pressure on goal shoot Caitlin Bassett.
The move proved successful up to a point, as Howard sank seven from seven in the third quarter. But the Magic circle defence of Casey Williams and Sulu Tone-Fitzpatrick worked hard on Bassett, who managed just three from five for the spell and the Magic went into the three-quarter break with a 31-28 lead.
At just 18 years of age, Tone-Fitzpatrick impressed with quick footwork, a long reach and some well-taken intercepts.
In a frantic final quarter, the Magic remained cool under pressure to shut out the game as the Fever paid the price for a sub-par shooting game, their overall accuracy rate barely topping 70 percent.
- NZPA
