IN the first reverse fixture for 2020, the Collingwood Magpies took on the West Coast Fever in a repeat battle that saw the Fever dominate all four quarters for a huge 14-goal victory (71-57). It was a one goal margin last time they met and the Magpies came out fighting, but the impeccable form of Fever captain Courtney Bruce was far too good as the Magpies attack faltered in their intensity.

It was an even start between the two teams, taking some time to feel out each other and both Stacey Francis and Jodi-Ann Ward switched on early. With two tall Jamaican timbers at either end in Jhaniele Fowler and Shimona Nelson, there was no issue getting ball into the goal ring but the miscommunication in the Magpies attack saw some misfeeds with Francis and Bruce starring in the early stages, gobbling up the crosscourt ball and forcing some soft hands on Nelson.

Nelson’s uncharacteristic inaccuracy seemed to be a worry for the Pies in the early stages, and while ball was still coming into Nelson and she managed a few good rebounds, Bruce was making it tough for the goal shooter to find space and limiting her ability to take the lob. But Gabby Sinclair had the hot hands early, sinking the first super shot of the match and seeing the Pies take the lead as Fowler continued to hold strong at the post. 

A great box setup from the Fever in the Magpies attack third saw Bruce collect another handy intercept though, seeing Fowler take the lead once more as the ball rocketed back down the court. While it was the Fever defensive setup that seemed to star early, Ward and Geva Mentor also had some classy moments, blocking the space of Alice Teague-Neeld and limiting the goal attack on the drive – seeing her miss all her first quarter attempts at goal – but unable to stop Fowler at the post seeing Fever lead by three at the first change.

Some class from Bruce saw the Fever break the opening Magpie centre pass of the second quarter and extend their lead, and although the Magpies’ defensive unit had not really skipped a beat, the star-studded Magpies midcourt was wasting a lot more ball across the court with both Madi and Kelsey Browne moving too fast for the court and missing the mark in patches. 

A change at the post saw Emma Ryde hit the court for the Magpies, sending Nelson to the bench to assess the match at hand, and adding a different offensive option with her strength on the hold. The change saw the end to a six goal Fever run, but with the defensive pressure of the Fever up and about the contest was still tough with a seven-goal margin for the Magpies to whittle down ahead of the second half. 

A 10-goal margin saw the Magpies need a super shot to get back in the game, and it was Sinclair who delivered and a huge Mentor intercept paying off with a second off the Fever centre pass to claw the margin back to a manageable half time margin. But Teague-Neeld also found her range in the super shot zone, seeing the two goal attacks trade super shot blows sinking three (Sinclair) and two (Teague-Neeld) respectively. A few sloppy Magpies moments reminiscent of the first term saw the Fever lead by nine goals at the main change.

A big second half saw Ward begin well, getting in amongst everything but the Magpies would need more than the defender to step up, with the opening half of 39-goal Fever the highest first half score for the season so far. Defensively, the consistency of the Fever did not falter with Jess Anstiss doing her job on Kelsey Browne, forcing a couple of turnovers from the speedster. A clever deflection from Verity Charles allowed another goal off the Magpies centre pass, while a change through the midcourt for the Magpies saw Kelly Altmann hit the ground running. While Madi Browne had racked up plenty of turnover ball thanks to her consistent hunt, the speedster had collected six general play turnovers as the Fever continued to maintain control, extending the lead to 11.

The entry of Sunday Aryang to defence saw the youngster have an immediate impact against Sinclair, creating a deflection off the bat and seemingly seeing the wheels begin to fall off for the Magpies, with Fowler dominating at the post with 46 goals to her name with just under three minutes left in the third term. Two super shots on the trot – and almost a minute worth of turnover ball forced between the two attempts – saw the Magpies take the quarter lead, with what had been a 14 goal lead reduced to 10 at the final change, and could have been eight if a Sinclair attempt after the whistle had gone through.

A couple of costly Teague-Neeld contacts saw the Magpies continue to stay in the game, but with much of their form only coming into the match during the super shot period the Fever were just far more cohesive. A five goal run by Ryde saw the Fever somewhat scramble, and while the defensive effort of Aryang and Bruce continued to do a top job putting doubt in Ryde on the shot, the Fever attack was getting in each other’s way. 

Bruce just about had the ball on a string, but Mentor was raring to go saying everything you can do I can do better, disrupting the play to ensure the margin stayed under 10 goals and well within their chances if the momentum continued to sway their direction. Nelson returned to the court with just over seven minutes on the clock and a fire in the belly, using her aerial ability to have a good impact and be a bit of a better match-up on Bruce. What looked like a calf cramp of sorts to Teague-Neeld did not seem to faze the Fever, with the defensive unit dominating and continuing to win back many of their own errors. 

Still with just over two minutes on the clock and a nine goal margin, the Magpies called a timeout and needed a heap of Sinclair super shots if they wanted to get over the line. A huge clash between Fowler and the goal post did not seem to faze the goal shooter, notching up her 60th goal for the game while a Kaylia Stanton super shot all but put the nail in the coffin, seeing the Fever run out strong winners, 71-57.

Fowler was ultimately unstoppable at the post, shooting 62 goals at 93 per cent accuracy, while Ryde top-scored for the Magpies with 25, as Sinclair (13 at 65 per cent including six super shots) and Nelson (12 from 14) both chipped in. Kelsey Browne and Teague-Neeld led the charge for assists, with 21 and 23 respectively while Teague-Neeld also put up five goals (two super shots), while Madi Browne was huge with three intercepts in her 35 minutes on court. All three defenders in Mentor, Ward and Mel Bragg collected an intercept apiece, although it was the Fever’s smothering defensive effort that really starred, seeing Bruce obliterate any loose ball in her path for six intercepts and eight deflections, resulting in 11 gains. Francis’ huge first half saw her rack up three intercepts, while Aryang made herself a nuisance with three gains of her own.

>>>FEVER TEAM PAGE
>>>MAGPIES TEAM PAGE
>>>FULL MATCH STATS

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WEST COAST FEVER 17 | 22 | 15 | 17 (71)
COLLINGWOOD MAGPIES 14 | 16 |14 | 13 (57)

Fever

GS: Jhaniele Fowler
GA: Alice Teague-Neeld
WA: Ingrid Colyer
C: Verity Charles
WD: Jess Anstiss
GD: Stacey Francis
GK: Courtney Bruce

Magpies

GS: Shimona Nelson
GA: Gabby Sinclair
WA: Kelsey Browne
C: Madi Browne
WD: Mel Bragg
GD: Jodi-Ann Ward
GK: Geva Mentor

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Courtside Comments: Round 3 – Sunday Aryang