THE Melbourne Vixens continued their hot form and stamped their authority on the competition with a 16-goal win over the Thunderbirds who could not keep up. Melbourne won all the bonus points and looked like a well-oiled machine the entire way down the court.

After a disappointing loss last week, the Thunderbirds came out hard pushing out to a two goal lead with long bomb specialist Maria Folau leading the way in attack. She was instrumental with ball in hand, delivering pinpoint passes into youngster Sasha Glasgow and finding the net herself slotting four from five. Glasgow stood tall under some immense pressure from Vixens defenders, Emily Mannix and Jo Weston who contested every ball that came their way. Chelsea Pitman was important in attack using her speed and precision to hit the circle edge hard, getting a clever tip into Glasgow who was home alone in the dying seconds of the first term, but was unable to convert. The Vixens worked hard and allowed their systems to take control with their calm, composed and clever use of the ball on display to peg back the margin and go into the break two goals up.

Defensively the Thunderbirds lifted their intensity with both Beth Cobden and Layla Guscoth picking up crucial intercepts to stop the attacking flow of the Vixens. But injury struck early in the second quarter, sending shockwaves through both the Adelaide and England camp with wing defence Cobden going down with a suspected ACL after landing awkwardly. Cobden was helped off the court with teammate, Pitman in close pursuit going down a few minutes later. Both players looked to be in quite a lot of discomfort and failed to return to the court, leaving the Thunderbirds severely undermanned. Adelaide were forced to make a couple of changes with Kate Shimmin moving into wing defence and Kelly Altmann pulling on the wing attack bib. With all the injuries to the Thunderbirds side, the Vixens took control piling on 17 goals with Caitlin Thwaites slotting 10 straight. The silver service from Liz Watson was on full display with the wing attack tearing up the court with her silky footwork, clever ball placement and general netball nous racking up nine goal assists in that term alone. Excitement machine, Kadie-Ann Dehaney made her way onto the court and showcased her aerial ability. Her impressive lean and ability to read the play won her an intercept and a gain to kick-start her afternoon.

The Vixens piled on more pain after half time, keeping the Thunderbirds to just eight goals for the quarter while Tegan Philip took control in their attack end. Philip slotted seven of her nine attempts while Renae Ingles had a field day across the court, driving hard to open up the angles and swing the ball with ease. Her three feet reach caused havoc for Petty and Altmann but it was the work she was doing off the ball that was impressive, covering every drive and cut and roll of her opponent. The Melbourne Vixens went into three quarter time with a 13 goal lead, with their connections down court strong. The Thunderbirds had some great passages of play with Shimmin showcasing her aerial strength taking a big intercept at the start of the quarter to grab the ball midair and then run it down the court but it was not enough to stop the Vixens who went from strength to strength.

With the game all but over, Shamera Sterling came into a league of her own using her quick footwork, long reach and impeccable timing to win the ball back numerous times for her side. Her ability to read the play was second to none, amassing six gains and four intercepts in the fourth quarter alone. Glasgow found more of the ball in the final term, sinking seven of her eight attempts while Folau continued her playmaking style with six feeds and four goals for the quarter. as the Thunderbirds seemed to tire, Weston lifted to another level using her long arms to get clever and timely deflections, finishing the quarter with four gains and four intercepts. Captain, Kate Moloney was her usual consistent self, doing the little things well and finding space across the court. she was not afraid to let the ball go into the Vixens shooters. Simone McKinnis made a surprise change, moving Thwaites out to goal attack in the last few minutes of the final term and pushing Philip into goal shooter.

STARTING LINE-UP:

Adelaide Thunderbirds:

GS | Sasha Glasgow
GA | Maria Folau
WA | Chelsea Pitman
C | Kelly Altmann
WD | Beth Cobden
GD | Layla Guscoth
GK | Shamera Sterling

Melbourne Vixens:

GS | Caitlin Thwaites
GA | Tegan Philip
WA | Liz Watson
C | Kate Moloney
WD | Renae Ingles
GD | Jo Weston
GK | Emily Mannix