IN the next edition of our new series, Draft Central has composed two Teams of the Week with one side each hailing from the Vitality Netball Superleague (VNSL) and the other from the ANZ Premiership.

ANZ Premiership:

GS: Ellie Bird (Mainland Tactix)
GA: Te Amo Amaru-Tibble (Central Pulse)
WA: Shannon Saunders (Southern Steel)
C: Mila Reuelu-Buchanan (Northern Stars)
WD: Kate Heffernan (Southern Steel)
GD: Karin Burger (Mainland Tactix)
GK: Sulu Fitzpatrick (Northern Mystics)

BENCH: Caitlin Bassett (Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic), Samon Nathan (Mainland Tactix), Taneisha Fifita (Southern Steel)

Ellie Bird was a focal point for the Mainland Tactix with the goal shooter commanding the ball with her strong holds, clever movement and scoring prowess. Bird was a constant threat and did not give up throughout the match competing hard in the air and going up strongly for every rebound to give the Tactix an edge, earning the starting goal shooter position. Pulse goal attack, Te Amo Amaru-Tibble had another strong performance with her work both inside the goal circle and in transition imperative to her side’s success. Amaru-Tibble showcased her class with ball in hand and overall spatial awareness to drive into the circle and shoulder the scoring load for the Pulse finishing with 22 goals at 88 per cent.

It was a vintage performance from Shannon Saunders as the Southern Steel captain paved the way in attack. Her speed and strength to continuously secure circle edge was second to none as her hot hand also enabled her to deliver pinpoint passes into her goalers. It was an all-round strong performance from the wing attack, collecting 24 goal assists in the win. The centre bib goes to Mila Reuelu-Buchanan with the Stars midcourter using her speed and fancy footwork to full effect. Put through her paces early, her endurance, composure and skill came to the fore over an extended period to drive the Stars both in attack and defence and provide that link between the two ends. Although it was not a stats-stuffing performance, Kate Heffernan showcased her ability to do the nitty gritty stuff and do it well. She really ground down her opponent and worked in overdrive to clog up the space and make life hard.

It was her best game yet since joining Mainland Tactix with goal defence Karin Burger sending a warning shot to the rest of the competition the minute she stepped out on court. Her class and ball winning capabilities came to the fore from the opening minute of play as she injected herself into the action. Burger was a brick wall in defence with her preliminary movement to cover her opponents drive and strong hands over pressure earning her a starting spot in this rounds team of the week. Joining her down back is Sulu Fitzpatrick. Funnily enough neither player were apart of winning sides but were arguably the best performer out on court. The goal keeper was a real menace down back with her constant tips and hands to ball to disrupt the flow. The Mystics captain was strong in the air and at ground level with her nimble footwork and body positioning a couple of key attributes.

There are a couple of exciting prospects on the bench with Samon Nathan playing one of her best games so far this season with the wing attack driving hard and using her lightning quick hands to find the shooters under the post while Taneisha Fifita was a real livewire down back for the Steel with her tenacity. The final bench position goes to Australian and Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic goal shooter, Caitlin Bassett who impressed with her holds and volume to finish with 47 goals at 86 per cent.

VNSL:

GS: Mary Cholhok (Loughborough Lightning)
GA: Lefebre Rademan (London Pulse)
WA: Caroline O’Hanlon (Manchester Thunder)
C: Serena Guthrie (Team Bath)
WD: Emily Hollingworth (Leeds Rhinos)
GD: Funmi Fadoju (London Pulse)
GK: Eboni Usoro-Brown (Team Bath)

BENCH: Kim Borger (Team Bath) Beth Dix (Strathclyde Sirens), Layla Guscoth (Team Bath)

The shooting combination has a real international flavour this round with Ugandan shooting star Mary Cholhok earning the starting goal shooter position and South African Lefebre Rademan securing the goal attack bib. Cholhok was in damaging form once again with the goaler using her flair and height to reel in the high ball and pile on the goals for the Lightning. She had the ball on a string in her second outing nailing an impressive 50 goals and only missing four attempts highlighting her high level of accuracy. Meanwhile Rademan showcased her playmaking capacity and scoring ability for the London Pulse. The zippy goal attack was a real energiser bunny, injecting herself into just about everything and darting inside the circle to apply some scoreboard pressure.

Moving into the midcourt and it is a couple of veterans that have retained their spot in this round’s Draft Central Team of the Week. Caroline O’Hanlon was influential for the Thunder with her fancy footwork around circle edge, impeccable timing and deft passes into the circle causing all sorts of trouble for the opposition. The highly athletic and gravity-defying Serena Guthrie gets the nod at centre after another strong performance for Team Bath. The centre plied her trade in defence and attack to win ball back for her side and then sprint down the other end of the court thanks to her silky transitional play. Emily Hollingworth had a game to remember for Leeds Rhinos with the wing defence earning her first nod in our Team of the Week. Her strong hands over pressure, closing speed and ball tracking were on song throughout the match.

It has been a breakout season for London Pulse defender Funmi Fadoju and this round was no different as she got hands to ball time and time again. The defender was a real pest, frequently creating tips and turnovers while her cleanliness was also obvious. Fadoju walked away with an impressive six intercepts and five deflections. Joining her down back is the ever-reliable Eboni Usoro-Brown with the goal keeper able to cleanly contest and cause disruption with her read of the play. Usoro-Brown worked hard to cover her opponent and apply some strong hands over pressure to get in the head of the shooters and force turnovers aplenty.

There is no shortage of talent on the bench with England Roses star, Layla Guscoth earning a spot thanks to her attack on the ball and ability to pickpocket passes for Team Bath. Beth Dix was a real livewire through the midcourt for the Sirens hitting circle edge with conviction, while the final bench position falls to Kim Borger with the Team Bath goal shooter impressing with her timing and accuracy to post.