“The girls should be very proud of their game tonight; they are working hard and building each week,” Murphy said.
In what Collegiate coach Elise Niu sees as “an extraordinary display of resilience”, Collegiate faced the formidable top-of-the-table Kaiwhaiki A1 team.
Despite being down to the bare minimum of seven players available for the game, the girls rose to the occasion showing “incredible spirit and unity”, Niu said. With key shooter and captain Lizzy Adrole out due to illness, the girls had to trust in each other quickly, which they achieved well. Meanwhile, coach Niu found herself having to take the court for her own Kaiwhaiki team due to player shortage, leaving co-coach Allegra Slater leading the girls with remarkable ease.
The Kaiwhaiki side, led by assistant coach De-Ann Tyrell, were also forced to explore new combinations due to illness and injury. With their wealth of experience, they were able to find rhythm early and build on their momentum by converting the turnovers forced by a formidable defensive unit.
Young shooter Georgina Nauga had a brilliant game under the post, using her strength to pluck the ball from the air and convert. The mid-court hummed like a well-oiled machine, with Kaiwhaiki winning 51-18.
Kaiwhaiki coaches are “pleased with progress as we continue to review and adjust our game for Round 2″.
The final Premier 1 game of the evening saw Pirates A1 take on Marist Mint A1 in a well-fought match.
Pirates coach Casey McDougall was happy to see Melissa Timoti back on court, coming back from injury.
“We created a lot of turnover ball but at times we didn’t look after it well enough,” she said.
It was anyone’s game but Marist managed to take the win with a five-goal margin, 35-30. Coach TeOra Nyman was very pleased to see her team put out a full 40-minute performance, particularly after being beaten by the Pirates side a few weeks ago in Round 1.
Outstanding mid-court defence from Paige Taiaroa combined well with Kelsi Hogard and circle defence Tia Davis and Keara Moses. The shooting combination of Shannah Andrews-Steele and Kellie Ranginui connected well, with WA Shawnee Brausch providing good placement of the ball to her shooters.
In Premier 2 match-ups, top-of-the-table Kaierau Gemini Pepper A2 took a while to find their feet against Kaierau Moore Markhams A3, with the score tied at the first break.
Full team defence was the focus for the A2s whose discipline and pressure led to some good turnover ball. Kaierau A3 coaches Blanche Cloete and Ash Head were happy with the opportunity to solidify player positions and establish effective combinations within their A3 side. Leela Beattie and Carmen Karipa led the charge with solid shooting, facilitating easy feeds into the circle for their attackers.
“We look forward to the upcoming weeks where we will be able to test our progress against other worthy opponents,” Cloete said.
The A2 side took the game 38-21, a commendable score considering the A3 side were defeated by more than 30 goals by the A2s in the first round.
Kaiwhaiki Gold A2 played Whanganui High School Junior A1 who, again, were weary after the majority playing representative netball the day before. Both teams are showing great gains throughout the season, Kaiwhaiki taking this one 41-24.
The final game of the evening was full of excitement, with the match-up of Mt View Marist A2 and Tech A1.
The Tech team came out strong in the first quarter, with a 10-goal lead at the break. Marist tightened up in the second half, after being 11 behind at halftime. Bianca Ross at WD came up with multiple intercepts and tips, providing turn-over ball, allowing her team to claw back the game to draw 31-all.
There are some exciting games ahead, so get down to the stadium on Monday nights – don’t miss out.
