With a new coach and no Gretel Bueta at their disposal it was always going to be a developmental year for the Queensland Firebirds, although it took them awhile to get started, the Rebecca Bulley era is starting to build momentum.
The Firebirds had a goal difference of -25 after the opening two rounds of the season before their new defensive combination of Ruby Bakewell-Doran and Remi Kamo began to gel and the girls in purple began to improve, pushing eventual grand finalists the Swifts and reigning premiers the Fever to the brink, before breaking through for their first win in Round 6 against the GIANTS.
They had a 3-4 record through the second half of the season, grabbing wins against Collingwood, the GIANTS (again) and the Vixens to showcase their improvement across the 2023 campaign, with their offence showing some really promising signs, ranked third overall for points scored and second overall for feeds with an attempt.
BEST WIN
Whilst the Firebirds did knock off the finals bound Vixens in Round 12, their best win came the week before against a GIANTS side who were mounting an unlikely charge for a spot in the top four.
Julie Fitzgerald’s crew were coming off two strong wins against Collingwood and the Lightning when they welcomed a Firebirds side fresh off conceding 97 goals against the Fever to Ken Rosewall Arena.
Rebecca Bulley’s side were down 17-14 at quarter time and could’ve been forgiven for being somewhat tentative following their performance the week before, but the Firebirds kept themselves in the contest before producing a stunning final quarter where they put 24 goals past the GIANTS defence to run out eight goal winners.
Mia Stower and Emily Moore had some of their better performances for the year finishing with 10 and 11 goals apiece from 12 attempts, whilst Leesa Mi Mi had 28 feeds and 18 assists and Remi Kamo collected nine gains, five deflections and five intercepts to lead the Firebirds to their third win of the season.
GAMECHANGER
Leading the line in just her second season for the Firebirds, Donnell Wallam shone brightly in a side that struggled for most of the year.
Wallam finished second in the SSN for goals scored with 669 and was ranked fifth for shooting percentage and sixth for successful Suncorp Super Shots.
The World Cup Reserve gave Firebirds fans plenty of moments to remember as well, in particular her performance against the Melbourne Vixens in Round 12 where she shot 59 goals from 62 attempts including six super shots as she dragged her side to an unlikely 76-71 win over Simone McKinnis’ outfit.
It wasn’t the only time Wallam was on song this season.
She had five games where she posted over 50 goals, including two outings with 60 plus, and she had just one fixture where she failed to get past the 30-mark, encapsulating her consistency across the 2023 campaign.
FOCUS AREA
First things first the Firebirds need clarity around the availability of Gretel Bueta.
If Bueta is back in 2024 they can turn their attention to other parts of the court, but if she isn’t they need to find some more consistent support for Wallam in the goal circle.
The rest of their decision making will come down to how quickly the Firebirds want to rise up the ladder. If they’re happy to go with the slow burn they can continue to focus their attention on the development of Stower, Ashlee Unie and co.
But if they’re anxious to push up into finals contention sooner rather than later they will surely look to dip their toe into international waters and add some more star power to their line up and give their list a deeper look to it.
