THE Queensland Firebirds have kept their Suncorp Super Netball finals hopes alive with a 63-47 victory over Adelaide Thunderbirds during Round 10, as the Battle of the Birds went the way of the Queensland-based side. Despite only leading by two goals at the main change, the Firebirds came out flying in the third quarter to pile on 17 goals to nine and eventually claim the 16-goal victory.

It was the Firebirds that made the first move as both Romelda Aiken and Gretel Bueta were quick to get on the board and Kim Jenner‘s smothering defence kept Georgie Horjus away from the action. Lenize Potgieter‘s clean movement allowed her to add a couple goals to the table but it did not take long before a 6-2 lead emerged the way of the Firebirds, with their seamless transition down court and defensive pressure negating the work rate of the Thunderbirds. Kim Ravaillion fired on all cylinders, finding circle edge with ease as both Bueta and Aiken found space inside the circle, while Gabi Simpson worked in overdrive to limit Maisie Nankivell‘s impact in the front-end. With Bueta running rampant Latanya Wilson was injected into the action in goal defence for Matilda Garrett and had an immediate impact, registering an intercept. A flurry of Potgieter goals toward the end of the quarter saw the margin tighten again though with just two goals in it at the first break, with Shadine van der Merwe‘s fine form continuing as she blocked Lara Dunkley‘s every move.

An improved start to the second term saw the Thunderbirds briefly hold the upper hand early, as Potgieter managed three straight and Shamera Sterling got in on the action at the other end, however it proved to be the Firebirds attack that once again got up and going as a couple of gains – via Dunkley and Tara Hinchliffe in her 50th national league appearance – allowed Bueta and Aiken to wreak havoc and extend the scoreline out to six goals. But all that hard work was undone by errors as Ravaillion uncharacteristically gave away a couple of errant turnovers and offensive contacts came to the fore, with seven of the last 10 goals of the quarter going the way of the Thunderbirds credit once again to Potgieter’s footwork and accuracy and some excellent feeds from captain Hannah Petty in her 50th national league milestone match. Just two goals separated the two sides at the main break, 29-27.

It was one again a hot start from the Firebirds that allowed them to get ahead as the second half began, however this time it was not taken away from them as the side tightened up across the court and extended their lead seamlessly. With eight early goals only blocked by a couple of Potgieter shots in the middle, the Firebirds were beginning to gain some confidence as Ravaillion set the court alight with three intercepts for the term. Nankivell’s influence was well and truly nullified by Simpson while the quick passes of the Firebirds made it hard for Sterling and Garrett to find purchase on the loose ball. An eight-goal buffer was lessened to six once more as the two sides went goal for goal, before Tippah Dwan joined the fray out the front to create a new-look circle and put up a super shot to extend the margin to 10 goals at the final change. The Aiken-Dwan combination appeared to pay off immediately as the duo rotated seamlessly and worked in tandem with the quick hands of Jemma Mi Mi.

The final quarter was do or die for the Thunderbirds, and they came out with a point to prove as Potgieter piled on six of the first 10 goals. But where Potgieter stepped up, so did Aiken, as the Firebirds goal shooter continued to fire on all cylinders credit to the impressive feeding load of Ravaillion and Mi Mi. Each time the Thunderbirds looked like rallying it was the Firebirds midcourt which stepped up, with confidence exuding from the side as Sam Gooden took the court for the Thunderbirds in a last ditch effort to reduce the margin with the super shot. But it did not pay off, as it was the Firebirds that extended the scoreline continually, as they ran away with a 63-47 victory.

Aiken impressed with 42 goals from 53 attempts, as Bueta (13 from 14) and Dwan (five from eight) both played valuable assisting roles. Ravaillion topped the assists tally with 19 to her name to go with her three intercepts, while Jenner (two intercepts) and Hinchliffe (one) were smothering in their defence. For the Thunderbirds, Petty registered 20 goal assists and three deflections to lead the charge as Nankivell finished with 14 and five while Sterling (three intercepts) and Potgieter (two intercepts, 37 goals from 38 attempts) led from their respective ends.

ADELAIDE THUNDERBIRDS | 12 | 15 | 9 | 11 (47)
QUEENSLAND FIREBIRDS | 14 | 15 | 17 | 17 (53)

STARTING SEVENS

Thunderbirds

GS: Lenize Potgieter
GA: Georgie Horjus
WA: Maisie Nankivell
C: Hannah Petty
WD: Shadine van der Merwe
GD: Matilda Garrett
GK: Shamera Sterling

Firebirds

GS: Romelda Aiken
GA: Gretel Bueta
WA: Lara Dunkley
C: Kim Ravaillion
WD: Gabi Simpson
GD: Kim Jenner
GK: Tara Hinchliffe