IT was a big day out for the New South Wales (NSW) Swifts on Sunday as they hosted the Collingwood Magpies, winning all four bonus points on their way to a solid 16-goal win to sit at the top of the ladder once again.

An early run for the Swifts saw a big win in the making, with the Swifts’ connection across the court apparent as they ran over a tired-looking Magpies outfit. The Magpies started well, shooting 14 goals at 100 per cent in the first, however did not get the volume of shots up that they needed to win the quarter as the Swifts took charge. Both goal shooters were solid early, with the likes of Sam Wallace and Shimona Nelson using the space well to capitalise on opportunities in the circle. Swifts’ Helen Housby had difficulty getting on the board early, however made up for it with her smooth movement down court, transitioning from attack to defence and back again as the Swifts caused turnovers.

It was a dominant defensive effort from the Swifts that saw them take the win, crowding the Magpies and forcing turnovers as the visitors struggled to find space and land on the circle edge. The clean defensive rotation and pressure from Sarah Klau and Maddy Turner was exceptional with the Swifts’ midcourt defence on fire, giving the circle defenders room to breathe as the last line of defence. While the Swifts challenged every ball that came their way courtesy of a solid zone defence through the midcourt, the Magpies appeared to be ball-watching as they played a one-on-one defensive game, seemingly unable to work together to capitalise on opportunities. Maddy Proud led the charge in attack as the Swifts fought for every loose ball, getting a few knocks but hopping right back up as she caused chaos across the court. Paige Hadley did her job well in centre, before the pair switched and opened up space better across the court as they took control of movement through the midcourt. While Ash Brazill started relatively well for the Pies, she struggled to inject her usual exciting game play of deflections and intercepts in to the match given the speed and agility of Proud and Hadley. Meanwhile, April Brandley seemed unable to control Housby, only coming up with one gain.

Though the second quarter started close, the Swifts took charge from the get-go as they shot 15 goals to seven before the Magpies managed to string more than one goal together. It was the Swifts’ clean ball use and use of space that created the lead, and while Hadley and Proud finished with a combined 47 assists from 91 feeds, it proved the patience of the duo as they waited for the best option to become available before feeding into the circle. Housby’s speed on the drive was fantastic, while Wallace held space well against Mentor who was solid but unable to create turnover opportunities. Wallace’s strong hold and clean hands worked to her advantage, with the Magpies unable to attack the hands to create turnovers as the shooting pair worked wonders.

The likes of Kelsey Browne and Nat Medhurst struggled to find space in the goal third, moving in a similar pattern as the Swifts covered their every move. Klau was clean in defence, defending her elevation to the Australian Diamonds World Cup squad with four intercepts and eight deflections (three to advantage), while Kate Eddy may not have got the stats on the board she was solid crowding the space around the circle, not allowing Browne to speed straight to the circle edge. Magpies’ Kim Ravaillion had a solid first quarter before taking the bench in the second half as new recruit, Kimiora Poi took the court in centre to add more attacking flair to the midcourt.

The Magpies seemed unsettled, unable to work into the game as the Swifts crowded and controlled the entire court. Browne was able to find more space with Medhurst off in the latter half of the third term, while Poi, Matilda Garrett and Gabby Sinclair took the court with an unprecedented trio on the bench – Medhurst, Ravaillion and Brandley. In another big change, Mentor headed to the bench in the final quarter after Wallace all but forced her out of the game.

All credit to the Swifts in yet another dominant performance, taking a well-deserved top spot on the ladder. Round 7 will see the Swifts travel to Queensland to take on the winless Firebirds, while the Magpies go head to head with the Vixens in the first Queens Birthday clash.

STARTING LINE-UP:

NSW Swifts:

GS | Sam Wallace
GA | Helen Housby
WA | Maddy Proud
C | Paige Hadley
WD | Kate Eddy
GD | Maddy Turner
GK | Sarah Klau

Collingwood Magpies:

GS | Shimona Nelson
GA | Nat Medhurst
WA | Kelsey Browne
C | Kim Ravaillion
WD | Ash Brazill
GD | April Brandley
GK | Geva Mentor