THE first match at Territory Netball Stadium almost saw the Adelaide Thunderbirds get a win at their home away from home, before a final quarter burst from Sunshine Coast Lightning saw the top four side fight for their fifth win of the season to secure second on the ladder in Round 7 of the Suncorp Super Netball competition in a 59-53 victory.

It was an intriguing contest from the get-go seeing both Karla Pretorius and Shamera Sterling start hard and fast after respective sub-standard matches last round to finish this match back on top. The Thunderbirds came out strong to prove their place in the competition, winning the first bonus point by one after sitting seven points up midway through the first term. The Thunderbirds appeared to have upped their connection across the court, with the likes of Hannah Petty zipping around the court and causing chaos in both attack and defence as she found good space wherever she landed. Sasha Glasgow and Maria Folau were on fire early, only missing one goal apiece on their way to a lead and shooting the lights out despite the strength of Lightning’s Pretorius and Phumza Maweni, who finished with a combined 12 gains, seven intercepts and six deflections. Folau was in a world of her own, finding separation with ease from her opposition in Layla Guscoth and showcasing her ability to turn and shoot from a distance.

For the Lightning, Cara Koenen (30 goals from 32 attempts at 94 per cent) got the start in goal shooter for a change, meaning Steph Wood got a break from feeding to turn and shoot herself, with 14 from 19. Koenen and Wood were well fed by the likes of Laura Scherian, who was on fire as she fed bullet feeds into the circle with 23 assists from 36 feeds, though coming up with five turnovers courtesy of the defensive prowess of Sterling and Guscoth. Shadine Van de Merwe worked tirelessly against the Lightning speedster applying good hands over pressure and using her vision to get timely tips to try and disrupt the attacking flow of the Sunshine Coast. Also in wing attack was English Roses’ Chelsea Pitman, who put on the accelerator this match to dominate the Thunderbirds attack with 19 assists from 28 feeds. Though the second quarter saw the Lightning fight back to lead at half time (25-29), an 18 goal to 13 third term saw the lead once again change as the Thunderbirds fought to stay in contention. Defensively, the efforts of Sterling were strong though still not at her Round 1 form, picking off eight gains and five intercepts but pinged with 10 penalties to be the most penalised on the court.

Laura Langman was the player to watch, coming up against two skilled but inexperienced centres in Petty and Kelly Altmann and coming out on top. Langman put her defensive prowess to the test, leaving the attack work around the circle to Scherian as she picked off the loose ball through the midcourt. Langman finished with four gains, three intercepts and only three penalties, a testament to the skill and cleanliness she put on display as she composedly led her team to victory.

The final quarter saw Peace Proscovia take the court as Sterling was rested, giving the Lightning an opportunity to fight back in the early minutes before winning the final bonus point to win the game. Despite the body on body skill and vertical jump of Kate Shimmin in goal keeper, Shimmin gave away a lot of height to Proscovia before Sterling took back her spot on court to attack the hands, managing two gains and an intercept in the final quarter alone as she fought for dominance of the goal circle.

This match will be a wakeup call for the Lightning, who lost to the Vixens last week and ultimately should have dominated this match given their connection and speed across the court. Next round both sides face their Round 1 opposition once more, seeing the Lightning host Collingwood Magpies on Saturday afternoon before the Thunderbirds travel to play West Coast Fever on Saturday night.

STARTING LINE-UPS:

Adelaide Thunderbirds:

GS | Sasha Glasgow
GA | Maria Folau
WA | Chelsea Pitman
C | Hannah Petty
WD | Shadine Van de Merwe
GD | Layla Guscoth
GK | Shamera Sterling

Sunshine Coast Lightning:

GS | Cara Koenen
GA | Steph Wood
WA | Laura Scherian
C | Laura Langman
WD | Madeline McAuliffe
GD | Karla Pretorius
GK | Phumza Maweni