THE Magpies claimed the Melbourne Derby bragging rights albeit in Adelaide with a narrow four goal win over the Vixens (52-48). It was blow for blow until the final few minutes of the fourth quarter where the Pies managed to put their footdown and keep their slim finals chance alive.

Early hands to ball from Emily Mannix gifted turnover ball to the Melbourne Vixens as Kaylia Stanton rewarded her side with a goal. Mwai Kumwenda also imposed herself on the contest nice and early as the Vixens skipped out to a handy two-goal lead. Collingwood had their chances but misdirected passes into Shimona Nelson cost them any chance to hit the scoreboard. The tables started to turn as Collingwood’s defence tightened up with Jodi-Ann Ward sneaking through for a deflection. Gabby Sinclair levelled the scores with a long bomb as the momentum started to shift in favour of the Magpies after the Vixens’ blistering start. Ward was quickly becoming a nuisance for the Vixens with the goal defence continuously getting hands to ball to upset the Vixens frontend.

With the super shot period in play both sides opted for the long bombs but neither could capitalise as the ball swung up and down the court. The Vixens tight one on one defence was making life hard for Collingwood while the Pies took advantage of their zone style defence to cause a ruckus. Down by two goals, Sinclair managed a super shot to once again level the scores highlighting the intensity of the game. Stanton was up and about early and proving to be a real option for the Vixens inside the circle while Kelsey Browne was struggling to find the pinpoint accuracy on the pass forcing Nelson to contort her body inside out.

The second quarter started with a bang as Jo Weston and Molly Jovic collided in the midcourt but were both quick to their feet. It was goal for goal to start with before Collingwood won ball back and tied things up with a tick over three minutes played. The quick feed into Nelson started to come to the fore as the Pies snuck out to a lead but Kate Moloney put a stop to that, coming screaming through for an intercept. It was relatively scrappy out on court with neither side able to string consecutive goals together. The Vixens pulled ahead by three goals but within a blink of an eye the Magpies were back within striking distance.

It was turning into a shootout between the goal attacks as Sinclair and Stanton carried the load in attack. Mannix and Weston double teamed Nelson under the post forcing the Pies to work the ball around until an opening arose. Things were starting to fall apart in attack for Collingwood with Ash Brazill releasing passes with way too much heat on them and balls flying over the baseline. Up the other end of the court the Vixens were finding a wealth of room in the circle with Moloney taking charge atop of the goal circle and delivering into Kumwenda and Stanton. Nicole Richardson proved she was not afraid to ring in the changes with Browne pushing into centre and Jovic slotting into wing attack. Hannah Mundy was showcasing her wares as the Vixens extended out to a five goal lead. But Ward was determined to not let it increase with the Collingwood defender wreaking havoc and whipping up an intercept out of thin air.

The Magpies slotted two quick goals to even the ledger but a turnover allowed the Vixens to steal back the lead and keep their noses in front. The shooter to shooter combination between Kumwenda and Stanton was firing as they bypassed the defensive pressure of Geva Mentor. Collingwood managed to kick things up a gear as they created a two goal buffer and with that the Vixens injected Kadie-Ann Dehaney in hope to stop the prolific nature of Nelson under the post. But every time one side stole the lead the other found a way to edge their way back into the contest as the Vixens piled on a couple of consecutive goals and Weston started to find her groove in defence.

Kumwenda’s shooting brilliance came to the fore as the goal shooter nailed a huge super shot to gift the Vixens an even bigger lead. The topsy turvy nature of the quarter continued as Collingwood slotted three goals straight to once again level the scores. Ruby Barkmeyer made her way onto the court to replace Stanton as the Vixens looked to find another edge in attack. Dehaney pulled out the party tricks with a huge rejection on the shot as Kate Eddy impressed with her transitional work for the Vixens.

With the game on the line the Vixens made a couple of changes as Allie Smith came on in wing defence  momentarily and Mannix returned to the court. The Vixens came out with a real point to prove nailing the first couple of goals of the quarter to swing momentum back in their favour. But once again Collingwood stood tall to hit back off the hands of Nelson as the goal for goal rhythm continued. Eddy came to life with an outstretched intercept but Barkmeyer simply could not find the net as the Pies skipped out to a three goal lead. The Pies showed great composure and smarts to ride out the game and steal the win.

Kumwenda led the charge for the Vixens nailing 33 goals from 37 attempts. Stanton chimed in with 12 goals, while Mundy had a hot hand racking up 17 goal assists. Mannix picked up three deflections and one intercept. Ward continued her ball winning ways for the Pies with eight deflections and eight gains as Mentor showcased her athleticism amassing seven deflections. Inside the shooting circle, Nelson stood tall with her 37 goals at 100 per cent as partner in crime Sinclair played a supplementary role nailing 14 goals and registering 14 goal assists. Browne’s contribution to the side did not go unnoticed as she recorded 19 goal assists.

MELBOURNE VIXENS 12 | 12 | 14 | 10 (48)
COLLINGWOOD MAGPIES 11 | 11 | 17 | 13 (52)

STARTING SEVEN:

Vixens: 

GS: Mwai Kumwenda
GA: Kaylia Stanton
WA: Hannah Mundy
C: Kate Moloney
WD: Kate Eddy
GD: Jo Weston
GK: Emily Mannix

Magpies:

GS: Shimona Nelson
GA: Gabby Sinclair
WA: Kelsey Browne
C: Molly Joivic
WD: Ash Brazill
GD: Jodi-Ann Ward
GK: Geva Mentor

Photo credit: Collingwood SSN Twitter