THE Victorian Netball League (VNL) returned this week after an impromptu midseason hiatus, with all five Championship Division matches playing out with some intriguing results on Wednesday night across four different venues.

Casey Demons (70) defeated Southern Saints (52)

It was a huge clash between top four side Casey and the winless Southern Saints, with Casey Stadium hosting an intriguing match-up from the get-go. While the Demons were quick to get on the board and by all means looked like definite winners in the opening five minutes, the Saints would not go down without a fight and switched up a gear to prove just what they are capable of. But despite a 15-15 first quarter, it was Casey that motored ahead and retained control of the contest, and even when the Saints found a run the Demons always had an answer which allowed the side to extend a nine-goal lead at half time credit to a 20-goal quarter. Whilst the deficit stayed at a similar number for much of the third, Casey eventually romped away with an impressive 18-goal win credit to a huge defensive effort in the final term.

There was no doubting the huge influence of Emma Ryde at the post for Casey, with the goal shooter towering over her two defenders in Stephanie McNay and Lyshae Barry, who to their credit piled on the pressure but could not compete in the air. Ryde piled on 56 goals from her 59 attempts, and despite the early yips had no issue finding the post with counterpart Sacha McDonald proving accurate too with 12 from 13. Accuracy and range were no issue for Saints goalers Sinead Lumsden and Ella Quinlan, with the duo utilising their rotating circle and excellent timing to find the goals. Samantha Silvester made a cameo in the second and third terms and provided a bit of spark in the attack with her stronger frame working wonders against both Georgia Vines and Julia Smith, however the workrate of Sharni Lambden was crucial in wing defence as she continuously wreaked havoc on circle edge alongside a fired up Tayla Honey. The injection of Alesina Toleafoa also proved handy while Ashleigh Gill and Lorna Clark showcased their tenacity and versatility through the midcourt.

Melbourne University Lightning (51) defeated Boroondara Express (36) 

An intriguing clash played out at Waverley Netball Centre, as Express really took it up to Uni throughout a huge matchup, with hugely differing ladder positions not phasing Boroondara in the slightest. But whilst a relatively even first half saw the away side trailing by just three goals at the main change, a 16-8 third term from Lightning took the wind out of Boroondara’s sails as they ran home with an eventual 15-goal win. Whilst perhaps not quite the margin thee undefeated Lightning would be hoping for, Express put on a defensive showcase while their accurate front-end prove crucial throughout.

It was the workrate of Express goal defenders Tegan Stephenson and Sophie Shoebridge that was the gamebreaker early on, with the duo working over the usually accurate Claudia Mawson and forcing uncharacteristic errors from the goal attack, who finished with 13 goals from her 20 attempts. Michelle Massarany was in similar form defensively playing out the entire 60 minutes in goal keeper, and reducing Mikaela Vaughan to a 73 per cent accuracy with her excellent hands over pressure and ability to snatch away the turnover ball. Stephenson also took a turn in wing defence and plied her trade well alongside Casey Adamson and Taylah Brown, while at the front-end there was no doubting the impact and form of Uneeq Palavi and Stephanie Gorrie, with the duo combining for 73 per cent accuracy throughout as Isabelle Hodgson added three from four to the tally. Defensively, Gabby Coffey and Fiona Fowler ramped up their workrate to provide a huge defensive buffer for the Lightning, while Shae Brown was a workhorse through the midcourt and both Zoe and Jordan Cransberg showcased their versatility as Lightning rotated around to find their best seven. Brown took a brief turn in goal attack, while Ramayer Gourley utilised her height in both goal shooter and goal keeper.

Peninsula Waves (56) defeated by North East Blaze (67)

At Knox Regional Netball Centre, it was the Blaze that came away with a closer than expected victory over cellar dwellers Peninsula Waves, with an accurate performance from the Wave almost tipping the results in their favour. Despite the Waves leading at the first change by one, Blaze turned the tides in the second and rode that momentum through for the remainder of the match. A 30-29 half time score the way of Blaze allowed both sides a chance to completely reset for the second half, and it was the away side that took the match on striking up a more convincing lead in the third before running away with an eventual 11-goal victory.

Peninsula’s goalers were cool, calm and collected under pressure, bearing the brunt of the defensive physicality from Tayissa Coppinger and Ruby Turner and proving the better for it finishing at a combined 88 per cent accuracy. Clare Vearing commanded control to post putting up 42 goals from her 47 attempts – with three of her five misses coming in the first – while Stacie Gardiner was a real playmaker, only missing two attempts throughout. At the other end, plenty of rotations were made by the Waves as they looked to combat the silky combination of Nyah Allen, Georgia Moody and Abigail Gedge, with the Blaze goalers working like a well-oiled machine and finding the post with relative ease once they ironed out the early issues. Tara Cecil and Shannon Rennison earned the starting nod in defence before aerial livewire Sussu Liai took a turn in both positions in the second half after successfully shutting down Alex Moody in the first two quarters. Meg Williams worked non-stop to provide transition from defence to attack for the Blaze, with Sienna Kelly, Leah Percy, Gabrielle Dwyer and Alexandra Ball tasked with limiting her impact in one way or another.

Hawks (36) defeated by Geelong Cougars (45)

An intriguing cash played out between the Hawks and Cougars at the State Netball Centre, with the Hawks really taking it to the the powerful Geelong side and, like many other sides, not relenting on their return to play. While the Cougars got out to a hot start and built on their first quarter effort in the second, the Hawks would not be outdone as they fired up in the third to reduce the margin with a low-scoring 11-8 quarter to trail by just one goal at the final change. With the defensive effort from both sides proving critical, it took the Cougars’ experienced heads to steal back the momentum in the final term, reducing the Hawks to just six goals as Geelong piled on 14 goals to win by nine.

It was a much more inaccurate showing from the Cougars to post than many are used to seeing, with the combined efforts from Bridgette Furphy (23 goals from 30 attempts), Julia Woolley (18 from 26) and Zanna Woods (eight from 13) sitting at 69 per cent accuracy throughout, with credit going to the likes of Clare Johnson, Chloe Sinclair and Sally Deller as they combined effortless to put on the brakes. Enya Broadley and Kelsey Buxton impressed with their willingness to contest and shut down both Emily Post and Vanessa Augustini, while Jasmine Ferguson had the hard task of taking on Madi Browne in centre, which she did with impressive endurance and tenacity. Nat Billings held ground out the front for the Hawks finishing with 24 goals, while Tayla Shannon was unafraid to hit the scoreboard, with Victoria Honner and Georgette Paatsch working hard to shut down the duo’s smooth movements. Alexandra Salter was critical in wing attack for the Hawks, using her speed to find circle edge time and again, with Geelong applying a couple of different defenders to her throughout the course of the match as they looked to combat her offensive nous.

Ariels (31) defeated by City West Falcons (66)

In their second clash without classy goal shooter Rahni Samason, the Ariels struggled once more to hit the scoreboard as they fell to the second-placed City West Falcons. Labouring away towards the bottom of the ladder, the Ariels have put in some impressive performances thus far this season but with little chance to train ahead of their clash with the Falcons and a new goal shooter joining the fray, the Falcons were far too good from the get-go. The Falcons well and truly earned the confidence-boosting win however, as they claimed the biggest margin of the round and extended their percentage with the 35-goal victory.

Defensively, it was a fairly solid outing from the Ariels, with much of their struggles stemming from the front-end issues, with it abundantly clear how much the side relies on Samason’s volume and accuracy to hit the scoreboard. Playmakers Olivia Morris and Stacey Gannon utilised their willingness to turn and shoot, however the defensive effort from Zoe Davies and Sarah Szczykulski was immense as the Falcons back-end worked hard to force errors off circle edge. Soli Ropati and Montana Holmes were livewires rotating between centre and wing defence, as the two used their differing skills to wreak havoc on circle edge, while the rapidly expanding scoreline also saw attackers Maggie Lind and Emma Walters take the court in centre, sharing the wing attack role in the process. Ariels midcourter Dionne Douglas worked hard in tandem with Maddison Wallmeyer and Brooke Goldsmith to create some control through the centre, while it was down to the combination of Jessica Maher, Brodie Smith and Alice Paget to limit Falcons tall timber Jane Cook, who piled on a whopping 45 goals from her 47 attempts, assisted well by Tahnysha Salanoa (14 from 15) and Madelyn Gray (seven from 12).

Picture credit: Netball Victoria