IT was a blockbuster game between the West Coast Fever and Melbourne Vixens with neither side able to be separated at the final whistle. Both sides were neck and neck drawing the third and fourth quarter highlighting their intensity and pressure. It was clear that the Fever had a point to prove and they well and truly made their move showcasing their dominance to post, quick ball movement and ability to mix it with the top teams.

Still without captain and general down in defence, Courtney Bruce, many questions were raised about whether the Fever will be able to withstand the attacking prowess of the Vixens. In recent weeks both Caitlin Thwaites and Tegan Philip have showcased their skill under the post sharing the load and capitalising on their opportunities. But credit to the Fever’s hot start the Vixens struggled to find their rhythm early with wing defence Jess Anstiss doing a wealth of work to keep Liz Watson off the circle edge. The new look attack for the Fever were on song early on with Jhaniele Fowler and Kaylia Stanton working well in tandem with Stanton showing she is not afraid to go to post. Her work outside of the circle was equally impressive with the goal attack feeding the ball well into Fowler racking up 10 goal assists in the first quarter alone while she also managed two intercepts credit to her ability to hunt the ball and use her long arms to disrupt the play from her opposition. With a goal in the dying seconds of the first quarter Fowler secured the first bonus point of the game for the Fever and gave them a narrow margin heading into the break.

Down by one goal at quarter time the Melbourne Vixens lifted both in attack and defence with coach, Simone McKinnis bringing on talented Jamaican defender Kadie-Ann Dehaney in hope to disrupt the high ball going into Fowler. Dehaney’s aerial ability helped to reduce the volume of shots by Fowler with the goal shooter only managing 10 compared to the 16 in the previous quarter. Dehaney threatened the Fever midcourt but Verity Charles and Ingrid Colyer continued their dominant ways creating space in the attacking third and delivering the ball to Fowler. Up the other end Watson stepped it up a gear using her speed and netball smarts to consistently re-offer on the circle edge and feed the ball into the Vixens shooters. Youngster, Olivia Lewis worked tirelessly in defence applying strong hands over pressure and congesting the space to nullify the influence of Thwaites at the post who only slotted seven goals for the term. With the Vixens fighting hard to stay in the game Philip shot a clutch goal after the buzzer to claim a bonus point for Melbourne and tie things up heading into half time.

The arm wrestle continued after half time with both the Fever and Vixens going goal or goal until the Vixens went on a four goal streak to claim some momentum. The lead pushed out to four goals but the Fever quickly replied with an impressive five-minute stint in the quarter to break even at three quarter time. Through the midcourt Kate Moloney was imperative for the Vixens using her clever ball movement and voice to encourage her teammates to stay in the hunt. Struggling to combat the height and dominance of Fowler, Jo Weston reappeared from the bench after Emily Mannix tried her luck out in goal defence. Renae Ingles worked her way into the game with her impressive footwork, ability to read the play and long reach to get a deflection and reduce the influence of Colyer around the circle edge. While in defence for the Fever, Lewis moved to the bench making way for Shannon Eagland who had an immediate impact picking up an intercept.Stacey Francis remained a constant down in defence for the Fever using her experience and ball winning ability to full advantage getting a timely deflection.

With the final quarter underway both the Vixens and Fever were locked in a tight tussle until the Fever forged ahead to claim a five goal lead thanks to Fowler. With the game looking all but over with less than five minutes left on the clock the Vixens experience and class shone through with Watson taking a crucial intercept and streaming down court to create a scoring opportunity for the Vixens. It was just the spark the Vixens needed with the players upping their intensity and hunting every ball to get back to level playing. A goal from Fowler in the last 30 seconds saw the Fever fans get excited but with the clock still ticking and the Vixens centre pass to come, Philip showcased her desperation and skill bombing it from the middle third falling out of court to Thwaites who turned and scored with all but one second left on the clock. In the end it was 63 goals apiece with Fowler claiming Player of the Match for her efforts under the post with 51 from 54 at 94 per cent.

STARTING LINE-UPS:

West Coast Fever:

GS | Jhaniele Fowler
GA | Kaylia Stanton
WA | Ingrid Colyer
C | Verity Charles
WD | Jess Anstiss
GD | Stacey Francis
GK | Olivia Lewis

Melbourne Vixens:

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