THE final round of the VNL Championships sees a whole lot of different priorities for different teams. With the ladder just about set, many teams will be playing just to finish their season on a high, while others will be looking to take some form into finals.

One such match where these competing priorities will clash is the one that sees Melbourne University Lightning take on the Casey Demons.

This clash may be a closer one then their respective ladder positions may suggest.

Both sides have won three of their last five encounters, and last time around they just could not be split.

Back in Round 9, it came down until the final few seconds of the match for the result to be determined, with both sides unfortunately running out of time to score a match winning goal.

Emma Ryde was particularly dangerous for the Dees that day, so she is someone the Lightning are going to have to keep an eye on this time around.

Speaking of Ryde, the battle in the Casey shooting/Lightning defensive circle is going to be a fascinating one to watch.

Ryde and Sinead Lumsden are quite a tricky pair to match up on, with Ryde at times a dominant tall forward, while although Lumsden is on the shorter end of the scale she is quick and can often prove that height is just a number.

The pair come up against a defensive end that has been quite formidable at times this season, consisting of Maggie Caris, Ramayer Gourley and Gabrielle Coffey. They have proven themselves against tall opponents in recent weeks, but how will they go when they have to battle a much different dynamic of a shooting duo?

In other matches, Ariels certainly do not have an easy final task when they have to tackle the ladder leading Cougars, while the Hawks and Waves will both be looking to finish their seasons on a high when they take on each other. Meanwhile the North East Blaze and City West Falcons will be looking to take some form into the finals when they take on the Southern Saints and Boroondara Express respectively.

VNL CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 18 FIXTURE

Hawks Netball vs. Peninsula Waves
North East Blaze vs. Wilson Storage Southern Saints         
Geelong Cougars vs. Ariels
Boroondara Express vs. City West Falcons
Melbourne University Lightning vs. Casey Demons