A HUGE battle between the NSW Swifts and Adelaide Thunderbirds ensued on Saturday afternoon, with the Swifts narrowly getting away with a three goal lead after trailing at the final change. While the Swifts did not need this win after the GIANTS’ earlier loss during the round cemented the reigning premiers’ top four status, it was a confidence boosting and ugly win that the Swifts will hope to use to push them in the coming weeks.

A fantastic start from the Swifts set the scene, causing confusion in defence and firing early thanks to Sarah Klau, Paige Hadley and Maddy Turner taking the loose ball and impressing on transition down the court. The Swifts were patient and efficient out the front, and with captain Maddy Proud out of the side the combination of Hadley and Nat Haythornthwaite seemed to have little issue finding Sam Wallace and Helen Housby. While Shamera Sterling and Layla Guscoth had a glimpse at the turnover ball they were not able to get hands to it. 

The Swifts excellent start continued although the Thunderbirds definitely stepped up, settling into the contest despite still making some minor errors allowing Housby to get in on the defensive action. Georgie Horjus started out in wing attack alongside Sam Gooden, with the duo needing some time to ease into it but overall working well to get ball to Lenize Potgieter at the post. While Hadley and Haythornthwaite had no issue feeding to Wallace early, it was as much due to the duo’s confidence as Wallace’s solid positioning. The Swifts headed into the second with a seven goal lead, dominating much of the first quarter. 

Where the Swifts dominated much of the first quarter, the Thunderbirds picked up their game in the second finding easier passage to post and creating the loose ball that Sterling thrives off. While a couple of Horjus misfeeds could have allowed the Swifts to take control but it saw the T’birds go the other way instead, causing errors and forcing the Swifts to play at their level. Maisie Nankivell was one of the crucial links who stepped up out in centre, using her timing to cause chaos while working in overdrive at both ends of the court. 

The Thunderbirds were much more careful feeding into the circle after a sloppy first quarter, not giving away as much ball while Horjus stepped up driving towards every ball and persisting on circle edge. A Gooden super shot on the buzzer saw the scoreline reduce to four goals, with the Thunderbirds unafraid to take the risk and seeing the defensive unit step up too. Guscoth continued to be a menace against Housby, blocking vision and applying a heap of pressure on both her opposition and the Swifts feeders. The Thunderbirds had a heap of opportunities to take the lead but the risk of the super shot began to outweigh the reward with long arms over pressure from Klau and Turner, trailing by two at the main break. 

The Thunderbirds continued on their merry way in the third, edging the scoreline to 33 goals apiece. It took a heap of work but the T’birds managed to take their first lead of the match with just under eight minutes on the clock, though it seemed that Wallace was not quite right after a knock from Guscoth in the second. Horjus continued to showcase her impressive vision and positioning as Housby hit the bench with a rolled ankle, as the Swifts’ players struggled to consolidate off their centre pass and allowed the Thunderbirds to maintain a two goal lead. Finicky errors from the Swift’s continued to plague the side, wasting a heap of turnover ball that the defensive unit worked so hard to win back. Housby returned and seemed to have an immediate impact on the Swifts’ confidence as Wallace sunk her first super shot of the game to see the Swifts down by one goal at the final change. 

A huge final quarter saw the Swifts come out flying as the combination of Housby and Sophie Garbin fired up, opening up space well as the Swifts stole back the lead with a huge 6-1 start to the quarter and forcing a tactical timeout from the Thunderbirds. Chelsea Pitman hit the court for the first time in wing attack as Horjus transitioned into goal attack, although Klau was there to spoil the party gobbling up the high ball and turning the tides. A couple of late super shots from Horjus saw the Thunderbirds get a taste but it was not enough as the Swift’s milked the clock for much of the last 90 seconds for a 57-54 victory.  

Player of the match Hadley starred through centre with 24 goal assists and an intercept, aided by Haythornthwaite who was not far behind with 19 and an intercept of her own. Wallace topscored with 26 goals while Housby worked her way into the match to finish with two intercepts and  22 goals at 92 per cent and Garbin added eight to the tally. Defensively, Klau and Turner impressed in the first and final quarters for 10 gains between them (five intercepts). For the Thunderbirds, Potgieter missed just the one goal on her way to 33 at 97 per cent, while Gooden managed 10 at an inaccurate 53 per cent (four super shots). Horjus put up four of her five attempts, three being super shots, while also racking up 13 goal assists, shared by Nankivell with 16 and two deflections (one gain). Guscoth was far more in the contest than her one gain suggested, while a relatively quiet Sterling managed three intercepts and two gains from her 10 deflections. 

>>> THUNDERBIRDS TEAM PAGE
>>> SWIFTS TEAM PAGE

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ADELAIDE THUNDERBIRDS 12 | 16 | 15 | 11 (54)
NSW SWIFTS 19 | 11 | 12 | 15 (57)

STARTING SEVEN

Thunderbirds

GS: Lenize Potgieter
GA: Sam Gooden
WA: Georgie Horjus
C: Maisie Nankivell
WD: Shadine Van Der Merwe
GD: Layla Guscoth
GK: Shamera Sterling

Swifts

GS: Sam Wallace
GA: Helen Housby
WA: Nat Haythornthwaite
C: Paige Hadley
WD: Lauren Moore
GD: Maddy Turner
GK: Sarah Klau