Firebirds are comfortably sitting in third place on the Rebel Sport Ladder with three wins after their Round 5 victory against this year’s leading team, Fever.
The Queensland outfit fought hard against the Perth-based side, producing a confidence boosting victory at home and collected three bonus points to cement their place in the top four.
Firebirds star goal shooter Romelda Aiken said she is excited for this week’s game against the Magpies and what lays ahead for her team this season.
“We are still working on the fundamentals that we need to work on, in the Fever game we showed that we can be so deadly.
“Collingwood (Magpies) have been a major rivalry for any team. I think this weekend we need to focus on what we need to do,” Aiken said.
The Jamaican-born attacker will celebrate her 150th national league game this Sunday and the 29-year-old is in the best form of her career, leading the league for most offensive rebounds (20) and sitting third on top goal scorer table (201).
The Commonwealth Games bronze medalist said she is enjoying her time at the Queensland Firebirds.
“I was really grateful for the opportunity that Netball Queensland and the Firebirds offered me.
“Throughout the process of this accomplishment (150 games) every story stands out for itself, it’s been a lot of highs and a lot of lows… it’s a really cool experience I’ve had so far,” Aiken said.
Partnering with Gretel Tippett, the pair have been unstoppable in the offensive half – Tippett scoring 88 goals from 101 attempts and Aiken 201 goals from 232 attempts.
After their 10-goal defeat by NSW Swifts last weekend, the Magpies defence will have to work hard with their mid-court to shut down the star shooters.
A possible season defining game, the Magpies sit seven points adrift of the top four and will be hoping to stay in finals contention leading into the bye week.
The Firebirds are the more in-form team out of the two, but both clubs have managed to win 11 bonus points this season – ensuring a tightly contested four quarter encounter this Sunday.
Magpies will be hosting the Queensland Firebirds this Sunday at the Silverdome in Launceston at 3pm AEST.
Purchase tickets here, or catch all the action LIVE on Telstra TV or the Netball Live app.
