THE Round 5 clash between West Coast Fever and GIANTS Netball was always set to be a blockbuster, and blockbuster it was, as it came down to the last 10 seconds of the game. The late Monday night clash over in Perth had fans hoping it would be decided before the buzzer, with a speedy held ball call on Jo Harten allowing Fever one last sniff as Jhaniele Fowler put the nail in the coffin for the 66-65 victory. The matchup was always going to be hard-fought, especially with April Brandley returning to Sydney ahead of the clash and the entire GIANTS playing group in quarantine in Western Australia, with all manner of frustrations coming out on court for both sides.

The match was fired up from the get-go, with the two undefeated teams leaving nothing to chance as Courtney Bruce and Harten waged war down one end while Sam Poolman worked hard to deny Fowler room to breathe at the other. The defensive work rate across the court for both teams was immense with plenty of awareness of each other’s offensive super powers, with GIANTS’ Amy Parmenter and Kristiana Manu’a stepping up early as the GIANTS took charge, while Jess Anstiss and Sunday Aryang did everything in their power to ensure the ball headed back to their offensive end. Verity Charles and Alice Teague-Neeld failed to fire early on with the former allowing Jamie-Lee Price‘s tenacity to get to her and the latter well and truly nullified by the work-rate of Manu’a. While the quarter started out shaky from both sides, a couple of super shots manufactured the momentum the GIANTS needed to lead by four heading into the first break.

A huge second quarter saw the offensive work-rate kick up a gear, with no stone left unturned through the midcourt as players looked to spark their goalers into action out the front. The injection of Sasha Glasgow to the Fever goal attack role late in the first continued to catch attention from the GIANTS defence given her ability to turn and shoot, while Sophie Dwyer and Harten rotated positions and continued to combine effortlessly, shooting accurately as Price and Maddie Hay continued to propel ball into the circle. A 20-goal quarter from the GIANTS – including three super shots to Fever’s one – saw the away side dominate much of the second quarter contest and quiet the Fever home crowd as they headed into the main break with a 37-29 margin, with a last-minute goal rewarded to Harten following physicality and an advanced penalty from her opposing captain in Bruce.

The third quarter saw the GIANTS start strong once more, painting a dire picture for the Fever, as the GIANTS went on a four-goal run to maintain their lead although Dwyer’s accuracy wavered a fraction which put a stop to a couple of opportunities to extend the lead. Olivia Lewis got her first minutes for the season as the physicality reached its peak across the court, with Price and Anstiss clashing on multiple occasions through the centre third. A couple of three-goal runs for the Fever paid off to trail by two for the remainder of the quarter, before Harten and Glasgow traded two-pointers again, and a couple of late goals from Fowler saw the Fever trail by three heading into the final term.

A huge final term saw the tide really take a turn for the first time, as the change was made with Dwyer heading back out to goal attack as Harten was pushed back to goal shooter, although Bruce remained in goal defence creating a real height difference at the post. Tense words continued between both the players and umpires alike with plenty of tough one-on-ones coming to light across the court, while a rolled ankle chasing up a contest forced Price off the court for the middle five minutes as the GIANTS held onto a marginal three-goal lead and called a tactical timeout, wherein Aryang entered the court once more as Bruce headed back to goal keeper. Despite the margin, it was the Fever – led by a hungry home crowd – that stepped up under pressure as the GIANTS gave away their lead for the first time with just under six minutes on the clock, with the combination between Glasgow and Fowler not skipping a beat.

Where the Fever stepped up with not long left to go, the GIANTS seemed impotent and even the return of Price did not quite do the trick as the super shot period began, with Harten’s hot hand from range seeming to go missing just as the Fever took the lead, with four goals in it for the first time. But the away side did still stay in touch, with two crucial super shots off the hand of Harten putting the side back in front, before Fowler evened up the ledger and the GIANTS looked to whittle down the remaining 35 seconds on their centre pass at 65-piece. Cleanliness and patience in attack looked like the GIANTS would get away with a critical victory, but a devastating held ball call on Harten under the post left the side wanting with just 10 seconds on the clock, as one last Poolman penalty in the single shot zone allowed Fowler to post one last goal and win on the buzzer.

Player of the Match Bruce was influential with seven gains (four intercepts, two rebounds, one deflection to advantage from three), while Aryang was not far behind with four intercepts of her own, and both Anstiss and Glasgow picked up an intercept apiece. Glasgow did her job well assisting Fowler, posting eight of 12 attempts (three of four super shots) and 20 goal assists as the Jamaican stalwart fired on all cylinders with 55 goals from 56 attempts. Charles managed 22 goal assists despite a slow start. For the GIANTS, Manu’a had a solid return finishing with four gains (one intercept, two deflections to advantage from five) as every player in the starting seven registered an intercept, although Hay (20 goal assists) and Price (16) combined for 11 general play turnovers. The shared workload between Harten and Dwyer continues to shine, with the England international piling on 19 goals from 20 attempts and nine super shots from 14, as Dwyer put up 27 from 34, with just one from long range.

WEST COAST FEVER 13 | 16 | 18 | 19 (66)
GIANTS NETBALL 17 | 20 | 13 | 15 (65)

STARTING SEVENS:

Fever

GS: Jhaniele Fowler
GA: Alice Teague-Neeld
WA: Emma Cosh
C: Verity Charles
WD: Jess Anstiss
GD: Sunday Aryang
GK: Courtney Bruce

GIANTS

GS: Jo Harten
GA: Sophie Dwyer
WA: Maddie Hay
C: Jamie-Lee Price
WD: Amy Parmenter
GD: Kristiana Manu’a
GK: Sam Poolman

Picture credit: Getty Images