By Damien Stannard
The Firebirds and Vixens sliding doors round, a Maddie and J tag team, and how the “Rad Pad” has shaped the NSW Swifts.
Burning question
Have the Queensland Firebirds clocked off?
Saturday’s appointment with the understrength West Coast Fever in Perth represents a now or never moment for the Firebirds.
The absence of Verity Simmons and Jess Anstiss from the Fever line-up is no guarantee of success for the Firebirds who have confounded coach Megan Anderson with four consecutive losses.
Their scoring has diminished week on week since their last win on April 30, and Donnell Wallam, Kim Ravaillion and Lara Dunkley have come back to the field.
Only the congested table has kept them in the race. Currently on four wins with three rounds remaining, it is possible the Queenslanders could sneak into the finals with six victories.
But they must show something against the Fever.
At the other end of the spectrum, the Melbourne Vixens started their charge about the same time as the Firebirds landed in quicksand.
The Vixens commenced their winning streak in Round 8 against the Firebirds and will be chasing a fifth straight victory when they host the Sunshine Coast Lightning on Sunday.
High stakes
Soon-to-be centurion Maddy Turner says there’s no pressure on her NSW Swifts teammates other than “to win in my 100th game” against the Collingwood Magpies on Saturday.
Jokes aside, the 26-year-old is a worthy inductee to the Swifts’ Centurions Club that also includes Liz Ellis AM, Catherine Cox AM, Kim Green OAM, Susan Pettitt, Ali Broadbent, Megan Anderson, Selina Gilsenan and Raegan Jackson.
Turner is a big game specialist, an asset she emphasized by winning player of the match awards in the Swifts’ 2019 and 2021 grand final victories.
She credited the Swifts’ culture and the backing of the “Rad Pad” – the house she shares with fellow “Radelaide” expats Maddy Proud and Sarah Klau – for powering her development at the club.
“When the Rad Pad came together in 2017 I started thinking I’d like to get to 100,” the speech therapist said of her Swifts housemates who have since welcomed Victorian Allie Smith into the pad.
“It’s easier when the whole team sticks together. And having the support of the Adelaide girls next to me is nice too.”
Turner was a match winner at wing defence when the Swifts downed the Magpies in Round 3, a role she could reprise against the lightning feet of adversary Kelsey Browne on Saturday.
Bogey game
Giants Netball pride themselves on selflessness, a virtue they will need again if they are to displace Adelaide Thunderbirds from third place at Ken Rosewall Arena on Sunday.
One of the keys for the home side will be how midcourters Maddie Hay and Jamie-Lee Price tackle the Jamaican wall built by Shamera Sterling and Latanya Wilson.
Hay and Price have each had some stunning moments this season but not often in the same game.
They attribute it to their team-first response to defensive tactics. If one is under pressure, the other half of the combination elevates her performance.
“Sometimes when J(Price) is a big target then it’s on me to lift as a feeder,” said Hay, one of the few players to have played every match this season, averaging 28 feeds and 15 assists.
“If I’m being double teamed then J’s the one to go to. That’s the cool thing about the Giants - we don’t play for the stats.
“When she’s on, she’s really on so it’s good for the team to just give her the ball.”
Hay will welcome the performance pressure.
The 27-year-old has produced some of her most effective games against heavyweight clubs this season, including busy matches against the Fever and Vixens in the last three weeks.
