THERE was an overarching theme across most of the games in the VNL last night – tight results.
One of the results that was not though was the match between the Blaze and Waves, which saw the Blaze comfortably come away 18-goal winners.
Despite the eventual scoreline, things were tight early. Proceedings went pretty much goal for goal for a lot of the first quarter as the defensive turnovers started to accumulate and Brodie Smith, Georgia Bowkett, Lyshae Barry and April Bethune really shone.
It was not until the last third of the quarter that the Blaze were able to briefly properly get ahead, but it was not long before the Waves reeled them back in again.
The Waves’ speed on transition was impressive and they were able to put the Blaze under real pressure and cause the turn overs.
This allowed the Waves to take a small lead late in the term and ultimately took a two goal lead into the first break.
The second term saw the Blaze get the first two goals of the quarter to level things up again, before the Waves went on a run to build a lead back up.
It was not until the back end of the quarter that the Blaze really started to take charge, and as such established a seven goal lead by the time the teams took a break for half time.
The Blaze really started to take momentum in the third term. A 19-9 term in their favour saw the lead balloon out, and even though the final quarter was a one goal difference in the Blaze’s favour, it did little to affect the final scoreline.
In other results, City West Falcons were the other comfortable winners, defeating Geelong by 15 goals. Meanwhile the Express, Demons and Hawks did not have such easy nights, with a combined margin across their games of six goals.
VNL CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 6 FIXTURE
North East Blaze (67) defeated Peninsula Waves (49)
Boroondara Express (56) defeated Western Warriors (55)
Bendigo Strikers (47) lost to Casey Demons (48)
Hawks Netball (60) defeated Southern Saints (56)
City West Falcons (62) defeated Geelong Cougars (47)
Bye – Melbourne Uni Lightning
Country star Lavis takes major leaps to get a taste of SSN
TRAVELLING from Victoria-New South Wales border into Melbourne multiple times a week would take a toll on any person. Numerous hours in the car, training for two hours, then having to drive back. It’s an endless cycle. Mia Lavis has learnt to adapt to that being from the country town of Howlong, but she appreciates […]
Charlotte Sexton’s dreams are becoming a reality
“I WANT to make Suncorp Super Netball, not sure how many years I’m off doing that, but hopefully a training partner role is the next step.” Little did Charlotte Sexton know, that statement would soon become a reality. Sexton was announced as one of the five training partners with the Melbourne Vixens for the 2025 […]
Lightning strikes twice for Hobson
IMAGINE going in for a routine scan to see how your body is holding up and being told you had no ACL (anterior cruciate ligament). Being told that the previous surgery you had five years ago wasn’t performed correctly. Being told you had to have a corrective surgery right when you were climbing up ever […]
Defenders delight as duo tie for VNL MVP
IT was a big night for the Victorian Netball League (VNL) last night, with the annual awards night taking place. In the Championship Division there was a tie for the MVP, with Sophie Hanrahan and Jessie Grenvold tying for the award. The win caps off a year that was just about perfect for Hanrahan, who […]
Triple treat for City West as Falcons fly high again
THE City West Falcons have established a true dynasty in the Victorian Netball League, defeating the Boroondara Express 64-53 to win the 2024 Grand Final, their third flag in a row. The Falcons led convincingly for most of the match as the key players really stood up and really did not allow the Express to […]
Boroondara through to a decider, but not all goes Expressly their way
THE Boroondara Express are through to another Victorian Netball League decider after defeating the Hawks 51 goals to 47. Although the Hawks put in a solid fight back at the end of the game, a strong first half from the Express meant that their efforts proved futile. The Express’ intent was on show early, as […]
Falcons fly high as Hawks survive first threat
THE City West Falcons are the first team through to the VNL Championship Grand Final after a 77-54 win over Boroondara Express in last night’s major semi-final. Although things started off tight between the sides, when the Falcons made some key positional changes in defence and attack they saw things swing in their favour, and […]
PREVIEW | 2024 VNL – Finals Series
AFTER an entertaining and at times unpredictable home and away season, it is now time for the finals series of the Victorian Netball League. Four teams are all that are left in contention to win the title – City West Falcons, Boroondara Express, Hawks and the North East Blaze. Coming into this three week finals […]
Chaotic round sees all loose ends tied up
IT was an action packed final day of the 2024 VNL Championship season, with plenty of elation, heartbreak and narrow escapes across the competition. Blaze suffer heartbreaking loss, but not all is lost The North East Blaze were unable to beat the Boroondara Express which they needed to do to make finals – losing by […]
