IT was a one-sided affair in a fight for the Sargeant-McKinnis Cup as the NSW Swifts claimed a thumping 14-goal win over the Melbourne Vixens (62-48). The Swifts came out with a real fire in their belly credit to a scintillating opening term of netball while the Vixens looked lethargic and a couple of steps off the pace.

The NSW Swifts wasted no time asserting themselves on the contest as the visitors piled on the first seven goals of the term. They showcased their ability to share the load inside the circle with both Helen Housby and Sam Wallace displaying their capacity and willingness to go to post. Held goalless in the first four minutes of the game the Vixens called a timeout but it was to no avail as Sarah Klau and Maddy Turner combined for a huge deflection and pickup. The Vixens got their first goal on the board a tick over five minutes on the clock off the hands of Kaylia Stanton. The Swifts were in complete control in attack with Housby sneaking along the baseline as they snuck out to an eight goal lead. But the Vixens started to combine in attack with Mwai Kumwenda’s presence starting to come to the fore with the goal shooter stringing together a couple of goals. The Vixens tinkered with their midcourt as Hannah Mundy pushed into centre and Kate Moloney slotted into wing attack to create some extra depth in attack.

A run of five goals from the Vixens had the home side up and about but the Swifts were not about to relent as they found a way to once again pile on the pressure. Klau was proving to be a menace as was Tayla Fraser in wing defence with the speedster contesting nicely around circle edge. Both teams adopted a slow and steady pace with neither able to navigate their way through the zone style defence each side put up. Housby landed the first super shot of the game as they skipped out to a whopping 12-goal lead heading into quarter time.

It was a shaky start for the Vixens with Ruby Barkmeyer unable to find her radar on the first shot while Wallace had no problems up the other end of the court. Paige Hadley and Maddy Proud were having a field day around circle edge for the Swifts with the two firing off pinpoint passes time and time again. Costly turnovers in the Vixens attack end continued to gift ball back to the top of the table side. The lead ballooned out to a whopping 16 goals as both sides rung in the changes with Stanton coming on in goal shooter and Kumwenda in goal attack while Sophie Garbin pulled on the goal attack bib for the Swifts. The Vixens simply could not buy a goal with the defensive duo of Turner and Klau running amok.

Despite having Emily Mannix out on court the Melbourne Vixens lacked any oomph in defence as Wallace carved up the goal circle. The Swifts skipped out to a 19-goal lead with everything they touched turning to magic. Moloney worked in overdrive to try and create forward forays but it was incredibly laboured credit to the Swifts hands over pressure. A couple of big defensive efforts from Jo Weston and Dehaney gifted the Vixens with a chance to peg back the margin. Errant passes from the Swifts also allowed the Vixens opportunities to capitalise but they simply could not rally enough momentum heading into half time down by 15 goals.

The Vixens made a couple of changes to start the quarter with Allie Smith coming on to replace Kate Eddy. Moloney also moved back into centre as Mundy swung into wing attack. The changes did not stop there as the Swifts dipped into their bench with Nat Haythornthwaite getting her time to shine out in wing attack. It did not take long for either side to settle into the alterations with the Vixens beneficiaries to start the term. The home side dwindled the lead down to 13 goals but a breaking call halted that momentum with the Swifts able to capitalise off their opponent’s centre pass. Turner and Klau were out hunting with their eyes lighting up every time a cross court ball came their way to create plenty of concern for the Vixens feeders.

Housby showcased her netball nous with a huge intercept and finished off her own good work some fancy footwork inside the circle to nail the goal. It was simply one-way traffic for the Swifts as they sliced and diced their way through the Vixens defence. Kumwenda stepped up to the plate in the power five with a much needed super shot while up the other end the Swifts were more than happy to play the one percenters.

The final quarter of action brought even more changes with Lauren Moore racking up some valuable minutes out on court while Garbin re-entered the fray down in goal shooter. Up by 22 goals the Swifts continued to push ahead and use their silky connections to full advantage. The battle between Garbin and Mannix brought plenty of fans to their feet with the goal shooter having the rub of the green. Six super shots from Kumwenda drew back the margin with the Malawian goal shooter determined not to give up as the side went down by 14 goals.

It was a dominant performance from Wallace with the Swifts goal shooter managing 33 goals at 100 per cent. Housby added nine goals while Garbin finished with 18 to her name. Kumwenda was the most dominant shooter for the Vixens slotting 31 goals including eight super shots. Proud amassed 19 goal assists as Mundy led the way for the home side with 11 assists. Defensively, Dehaney was a commanding presence racking up two intercepts and three deflections while Klau starred with a whopping 12 gains and 12 deflections.

MELBOURNE VIXENS 6 | 9 | 10 | 23 (48)
NSW SWIFTS 18 | 13 | 16 | 15 (62)

Vixens:

GS: Mwai Kumwenda
GA: Kaylia Stanton
WA: Hannah Mundy
C: Kate Moloney
WD: Kate Eddy
GD: Jo Weston
GK: Kadie-Ann Dehaney

Swifts:

GS: Sam Wallace
GA: Helen Housby
WA: Paige Hadley
C: Maddy Proud
WD: Tayla Fraser
GD: Maddy Turner
GK: Sarah Klau

Photo credit: SSN Twitter