THE Victorian Netball League (VNL) train just keeps powering along, with Round 4 upon us already.

Tonight’s fixtures are also the last before the Nationals break, so the last chance for sides to cement early season form or reverse it before a week and a half’s break.

Just like it did last week, both the number of undefeated and winless sides are set to decrease tonight.

One of Boroondara Express and the Southern Saints will suffer their first loss for the season tonight when they do battle. Both sides have shown significant improvement this season, so this is set to be an enthralling match. Fans will able to watch this game via Netball Victoria’s Facebook page.

Up the other end of the table, one of either the Ariels or Peninsula Waves will earn their first wins tonight when they clash. After both sides had tough seasons last year and have had a bad start this year, a win tonight could really propel the winner forward into the season. If it is the Ariels that get the chocolates tonight, it’ll be their first win in over a year, after the closest they got to a win last year was a draw in Round 1.

In the other broadcasted clash – this one on Kommunity TV – the North East Blaze are set to take on last year’s champions the City West Falcons. A battle of second against fourth, this could be an absolutely entertaining clash. City West’s percentage is actually better than the Blaze’s despite that loss to their name, which just shows what a small loss can do to your ladder position.

Moving down the ladder, and it is sixth versus seventh as Melbourne Uni takes on the Hawks.

Both these sides only have one win to their name so far this season so will be keen to improve that record tonight. The Hawks in particular will be hoping for a big win as they will want to improve their percentage significantly.

Speaking of needing a percentage boost, Geelong will also be hoping for a big win tonight when it takes on Casey. The Dees are one of the winless sides stuck at the bottom of the table, while Geelong are three spots above them, but in desperate need of a percentage boost as its percentage is 10 to 20% worse than the teams around it, which may prove crucial come later in the year.

VICTORIAN NETBALL LEAGUE ROUND 4 FIXTURE

Boroondara Express vs Wilson Storage Southern Saints

Peninsula Waves vs Ariels

North East Blaze vs City West Falcons

Hawks Netball vs Melbourne University Lightning

Geelong Cougars vs Casey Demons