IT was a great day for the undefeated sides at the 2022 Australian Netball Championships (ANC) as the West Coast Fever, Collingwood Magpies and Victoria Fury all posted wins. In the first match, Southern Force got on the board moving to 1-1 by defeating GIANTS Netball, also leaving the orange team at 1-1.

SOUTHERN FORCE 10 | 15 | 16 | 15 (56)
GIANTS NETBALL 13 | 11 | 12 | 12 (48)

Two sides that had respective byes on day one and day two, Southern Force was able to come away with their first win of the ANC with an eight-goal victory over GIANTS Netball. In a tight contest for most of the match, the GIANTS had the early advantage leading by three goals at quarter time and by as much as six goals five minutes into the second term.

A late goal in the second term to the Force saw the South Australian side hit the front by that margin at the main break, and went on with it in the second half. The Thunderbirds-aligned outfit scored 31 goals to 24 after half-time to run out 56-48 victors, which resulted in both teams moving to 1-1 from their two games.

Thunderbirds goal shooter Lucy Austin put up 36 goals from 41 attempts, while Lauren Frew (10 goals from 11 attempts) and Poppy Gilfillan-Silk (10 from 11) contributed evenly. Georgia Dent was sensational in wing attack with a match high 25 goal assists, while Jessie Grenvold managed a whopping six intercepts in defence.

For the GIANTS, it was no surprise to see young shooter Matisse Letherbarrow get amongst the gaols, shooting 33 from 38 attempts, while Emily Moore shot at 100 per cent from 13 attempts. Eliza Burton (18 goal assists, one intercept) was prolific in wing attack, as Amy Sligar pocked up four intercepts and seven goal assists between centre and wing defence.

WEST COAST FEVER 14 | 14 | 18 | 18 (64)
CAPITAL DARTERS 14 | 12 | 10 | 11 (47)

A Nat Medhurst-inspired West Coast Fever outfit was able to storm away from a plucky Capital Darters outfit in the second game of the day, running out 17-goal winners after an even first half. Neither side could gain much of an ascendancy in the first half despite the Fever being more experienced, but once Medhurst came onto the court, the whole momentum changed. The Fever looked a better side and it reflected on the scoreboard offensively and defensively, scoring eight more goals and conceding five less goals compared to the second half. By the final buzzer, the Fever had ran out 64-47 victors.

Medhurst scored 11 goals from 13 attempts and had 10 goal assists from 10 feeds in a remarkable effort, coming on alongside Emma Putt who was the beneficiary of Medhurst’s feeding, shooting 25 of 27. Numi Tupaea played a full game in wing attack had had 17 goal assists and two intercepts, while Caitlyn Brown pulled in five intercepts standing up in goal keeper. In the opening half, Sloan Burton looked strong in goal shooter, making 16 of 19. For the Darters, Taylah Davies was again outstanding, picking up a match-high 21 goal assists, as well as three intercepts, while Olivia Coleman ((our rebounds, three intercepts) was strong in goal keeper. Nalani Makunde shot 36 goals from 40 attempts with an impressive display in goal shooter for the majority of the game.

NSW SWIFTS 18 | 14 | 12 | 13 (57)
COLLINGWOOD 14 | 18 | 17 | 13 (62)

Collingwood came back from an early scare to shake off a determined NSW Swifts and record its third straight win of the ANC. The Magpies started with young shooter Olivia Wilkinson, but brought on Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) listed shooter Nyah Allen at quarter time, resulting in a change of fortunes.

The Magpies, who trailed by four goals at the first break, quickly made up the deficit, then levelled the scores at the main break. With a well-balanced unit across the court, the black and whites outscored the Swifts 17-12 in the third term, which was ultimately the difference between the sides. Both teams scored 13 goals in the last quarter, which left the difference at five and the Magpies coming away with a 62-57 win.

Though Allen only scored nine goals – at 100 per cent efficiency no less – she also had 13 goal assists and looked to get into good positions to create open space in the front third. The towering Jane Cook put up a half century of goals, posting 50 from 53 for her troubles. Maggie Lind (25 goal assists, one intercept and only one turnover) was busy, while Montana Holmes (two intercepts, seven goal assists) worked hard through the midcourt.

For the Swifts, Alison Miller was sensational firing 46 goals at 100 per cent, as her partner-in-crime Laura Towell also did not miss a shot from 11 chances. It would not be enough to post the win, but Towell had 25 goal assists, while centre Audrey Little (15 goal assists, one intercept) was also lively once again.

VIC FURY 13 | 14 | 14 | 17 (58)
TASMANIA 10 | 10 | 7 | 14 (41)

Victoria Fury continued its unbeaten streak with a strong second half against Tasmania to win by 17 goals. In match that was billed as a somewhat David against Goliath clash given the amount of SSN listed players past and present on the Fury’s squad compared to the inexperienced Tasmanian side, it was the underdogs that refused to give in across the first half, backing themselves in and taking it up to the Fury.

Though the Fury were a little more polished and able to rotate through their younger players, Tasmania did the same, and just seven goals separated the sides at the main break. The experienced Fury broke away in the third term to double their lead by the final break and make it a 14-goal advantage with 15 minutes to play. Tasmania fought right to the end, but by the final buzzer, the Fury had saluted, 58-41.

Emily Andrew scored 34 goals from 38 attempts, as Claudia Mawson put up 20 from 27, earning valuable court minutes for the winners. Jordan Cransberg was influential through centre and wing attack with 19 goal assists and two intercepts doing the hard yards, as Gabrielle Coffey and Maggie Caris combined for nine intercepts up the defensive end. For Tasmania, Shelby Miller lead from the front with 19 goal assists and two intercepts, while Alex Vinen and Gemma Collyer – who only spent 17 minutes on court – had three and two intercepts respectively. Hayley McDougall scored 28 goals from 31 attempts in the loss.