ROUND 4 of the ANZ Premiership is done and dusted and with that came some scintillating performances from the next generation of players. This series will cast an eye over a host of under 21s players that made their way out on court and the impact in which they had for their respective sides.

Northern Mystics:

Grace Nweke

There are not enough superlatives to describe Nweke who continues to shine at ANZ Premiership level. The goal shooter is a real barometer for her side with her strong holds and aerial presence enabling her to combat defenders with ease. Her balance along the goal-line was impressive and while she never strays far from under the post there is no need as she does her best work there. Nweke is a constant threat and her skill to deliver under all sorts of pressure hardly faltered. She shouldered the load in the third quarter, with her body positioning, netball smarts and slick hands seeing her sink a whopping 21 goals.

Tayla Earle

Another solid performance from Earle through the centre who just ground down her opponent and worked hard to win the ball. While not the flashiest player out on court Earle showcased her endurance and ability to do the little things right such as her strong hands over pressure to force turnovers and speed to dart down the court. Her two-way running was a real feature of her game able to explode out of the blocks and play both an attacking and defensive role. Earle was strong around circle edge to contest the pass into the goalers and could back it up with her own quick-fire passes.

Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic:

Khiarna Williams

The injection of Williams shifted the entire game with the 18-year-old making her presence well and truly felt. With a good balance of speed and strength Williams was able to dominate at the post and also be a real playmaker. The youngster used her height to full advantage to get up to those high balls and reel them in while also displayed her skillset to get down low. She drove hard into the circle to draw the attention of the defender while Williams also impressed with her skill to create attacking forays. Her movement and composure with ball in hand was impressive as was her connection with Caitlin Bassett as the two combined seamlessly. The strong shooter to shooter interplay kept the defenders heads on a swivel with her evasiveness also coming to the fore.

Georgie Edgecombe

Down on her Round 3 performance, Edgecombe still played a critical role for the Magic with her niggling presence around circle edge. Her work at the centre pass to shut down her opponents space and contest the ball was second to none while Edgecombe provided strong support for her attackers in transition. Although it was not a stats stuffing performance it was the little things such as her three-foot marking, shadowing movement, busy footwork and vision that impressed.

Central Pulse:

Paris Lokotui

Coming on at wing defence, Lokotui utilised her extra centimetres to block vision into the circle for opposition attackers. Her nous to drop back into the open space and read of the play was important for the Pulse. Lokotui put in the hard yards, covering the court well and mounting pressure to allow a chance for her fellow defenders to reap the rewards.   

Maddy Gordon:

Speedster, Gordon showed no sign of her ankle injury throughout the opening half of the game with the highly touted midcourter getting a hand in just about everything. She had her work cut out for her against the quick-footed Peta Toeava but that did not seem to bother her as Gordon employed some strong three-foot marking and went toe-to-toe with her. Gordon was a pillar in defence with her closing speed coming to the fore while her transitional play was also imperative. When she swung into wing attack, Gordon did not skip a beat delivering pinpoint passes into the circle and creating a wealth of space to allow the attackers to find their groove.

Parris Mason

Although Mason was only on for a short period of time she made a lasting impact given her pace and tenacity to read the play and intercept. The young defender backed herself in every situation and showcased her fancy footwork to take herself to the ball rather than throwing her body at the contest.

Southern Steel:

Tiana Metuarau

Although it was not the most accurate display, Metuarau did what she needed. Her playmaking skills are one of her biggest assets and that was again on full display as she got crafty with ball in hand to deliver into George Fisher. Her timing on the drive, spatial awareness and vision was also obvious throughout the contest. She directed the traffic and while she was the shortest player in the circle by a long way proved that height is just a number using her leap to contest for the rebound and reel them in.

Taneisha Fifita

Fifita had another dominant performance down back with the goal keeper using her leap to get hands to ball and create turnovers aplenty. the young defender employed plenty of physicality to offset Maia Wilson and forced the goal shooter to hug the baseline rather than enjoy all the freedom of the circle. she worked gallantly to cover every move made with her quick footwork but her lack of experience came to the fore in patches especially when the Stars enacted their pacy ball movement. She contested strongly on the rebound to snatch the ball out of mid-air and worked hard to keep Wilson out of the circle with her pressure around circle edge.

Kate Heffernan

Running through the centre, Heffernan was a real workhorse that was not willing to give an inch. Her commitment in both attack and defence gave her side plenty of chances to capitalise while her ability to constantly re-offer kept the opposition on their toes. Heffernan was always on the move and used her deceptive speed to burst through the centre and get hands to ball to create a deflection. Started to tire throughout patches of the game and was on the receiving end of a couple of errant passes.

Renee Savai’inaea

The wing defence showed great hustle in the defensive third to isolate the ball carrier and apply strong hands over pressure. Savai’inaea was not afraid to leave her player and double team her opponent and took advantage of her leap to get up and cause confusion.