Swifts and Steel play out thrilling draw

In one of the most exciting games of the 2016 ANZ Championship, the NSW Swifts and Southern Steel played out an enthralling 59-59 draw at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre on Saturday 2 July.

The contest was billed as a thriller before the first whistle, and the teams didn’t disappoint as the leaders of both respective Australian and New Zealand Conferences went at it hammer and tongs for 60 minutes to produce a trans-Tasman clash of epic proportions.

Played in front of a packed house, both teams had their chances to gain ascendency but ultimately couldn’t be separated after four amazing quarters at the end of which the teams shook hands and shared points.

Speaking afterwards Swifts Head Coach Rob Wright said he felt the draw was a fair result and the game would benefit his players.

“That was a really tough game out there tonight but I think it’s really good preparation for Finals,” Wright said.

“I think they (the Steel) won the midcourt battle and I think we struggle to execute what we needed to do against them because they were very good.

“In patches I think we showed that what we were trying to do was really on the money and we just have to stick at it … and there were a few patches when it went away from us but what I was happy about was how we fought back.

“We need to be more consistent and not allow ourselves fall behind like that.”

The Swifts got off to a good start with two early Susan Pettitt goals and a trademark Sharni Layton intercept allowing them hit the ground running. However, it wasn’t long before the Steel showed their class with some good feeds into the shooting circle allowing Jhaniele Fowler-Reid and Te Paea Selby-Rickit to get the Kiwi side back on level terms.

Excellent work in the midcourt from Paige Hadley and Laura Langman then forced the Steel into costly turnovers, which the Swifts were able to capitalise by opening up a handy lead midway through the quarter; led by Pettitt and Caitlin Thwaites who played off each other nicely to keep the Steel defence on its toes.

The visitors were also playing attractive netball, with Shannon Francois and Gina Crampton ensuring their shooters had plenty of possession to work with; however, it was the home team who were able to take a 16-13 lead to the first break.

Two Layton intercepts set the tone for a fired-up Swifts at the start of the second quarter and nice movement from Maddy Turner, Stephanie Wood and Hadley allowed the Swifts to open up a five goal lead. But the Steel weren’t fazed and pin-point passing from Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit and Crampton allowed Fowler-Reid the opportunity to get her team back within two midway through the quarter.

It was an end-to-end contest for the next few minutes as the sides traded goals with the majority of the Swifts’ coming from Thwaites who was receiving great service from the circle edge. The Swifts briefly had a four-goal lead (28-24) before Steel’s defence secured vital turnovers which allowed them to get back on level terms at half time, 29-29.

Continuing their momentum from late in the first half, the Steel stormed into the third quarter by quickly opening up a handy three-goal lead. However after welcoming Captain Kimberlee Green onto the court at the big break, the Swifts soon made the move. Through the Green-Hadley midcourt pairing, the shooters received excellent passing to get back on level terms once more.

The rest of the quarter was literally end-to-end again as the sides went goal-for-goal, with the Steel taking the slimmest of leads to the last break after Fowler-Reid found the post right on the final whistle.

Excellent defence from Frew and Watson again denied the Swifts scoring opportunities at the start of the final quarter, with the Steel capitalising on the play to get back out to a two-goal advantage.  However again, through back-to-back Pettitt goals the Swifts got back on level term, before the Steel regained their lead.

Green led by example with a wonderful intercept that ultimately led to a four-goal scoring run to see the Swifts once again draw level at 56-56 with five minutes remaining. This trend continued until the dying seconds, when a Thwaites goal was disallowed to lock the game at a 59-all result.

The Swifts now await in anticipation the result of tomorrow’s Queensland Firebirds v West Coast Fever contest at Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, with broadcast starting from 12pm AEST on Network 10, Fox Sports and the Netball Live App.

Should the Firebirds win, the Swifts will finish in second place on the Australian Conference Ladder and therefore host the Elimination Final next Sunday 10 July at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre. Should the Fever win – or the game also finishes in a draw – the Swifts will finish Australian Conference Minor Premiers and host the Conference Final on Sunday 17 July at SOPSC.

MVP: Gina Crampton (Steel)

Quarter-by-Quarter Scores:

SWIFTS | Q1: – 16 – Q2: 29 (13) – Q3: 44 (15) – Q4: 59 (15)

STEEL | Q1: – 13 – Q2: 29 (16) – Q3: 45 (16) – Q4: 59 (14)

Shooting Statistics:

SWIFTS: 59/63 @ 94%

C Thwaites: 29/31 @ 94%

S Pettitt: 30/32 @ 94%

STEEL: 59/64 @ 92%

J Fowler-Reid: 50/52 @ 96%

T Selby-Rickit: 9/12 @ 75%

Starting Line-ups:

SWIFTS | GS Caitlin Thwaites, GA Susan Pettitt, WA Stephanie Wood, C Paige Hadley, WD Laura Langman, GD Maddy Turner, GK Sharni Layton

STEEL | GS Jhaniele Fowler-Reid, GA Te Paea Selby-Rickit, WA Gina Crampton, C Shannon Francois, WD Wendy Frew, GD Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit, GK Jane Watson

Positional Changes:

SWIFTS| Q3 – WA Kimberlee Green (C)

*This article first appeared on www.netball.com.au