When: Sunday 8 July 12.30pm (local time)Where: Adelaide Entertainment Centre, AdelaideBroadcast: Channel 9, Telstra TV and the Netball Live app
Last time they met in Round 3:
Magpies (70) defeated Thunderbirds (50)
Magpies
MATCH-UP
Thunderbirds
33
Mins. In Possession
27
12
Gain
9
7
Intercepts
3
13
Deflections
4
89
Goal Shooting %
80
While the Thunderbirds started off strong, it ended up being a straight forward win for the Magpies – by a total of 20 goals which secured them eight much deserved points.
VIDEO
Game talking points:
Cat Tuivaiti to debut for the Thunderbirds after returning from an ACL tear suffered in July 2017, shortly after signing to play for the Adelaide Thunderbirds for their 2018 season. The Thunderbirds will hope that she can be the spark to get their season going.
Kate Shimmon’s 15 defensive rebounds and her drive for the game has pushed the Thunderbirds each week, alongside an ever improving Shimona Nelson at the other end of the court.
Madi Robinson is still a threat to any team and Caitlin Thwaites has moved up into second place in the leading goal scorer’s table with 369 goals. This pairing will be what the Thunderbirds will have to focus on stopping if they want to get their first win of the season this weekend.
If Thunderbirds want to win…
The debut of Cat Tuivaiti may be just what Thunderbirds need to change their psychological mindset around and introduce new muscle into the team. The advantage of a home game should drive, but not distract them. The Adelaide side will need to bring strength and grit across the court for all four quarters, eradicating lapses in concentration for brief periods of games which has been their biggest flaw.
If Magpies want to win…
The Magpies still have plenty of firepower in their arsenal, they just need to start using it. The past few weeks they have been either slow getting out of the blocks, or timid in finishing off games. The possession of the ball will be important and they will need to consistent move the it down the court with speed to create plenty of goal scoring chances. The mid court need to work out how to best utilise Erin Bell’s talents, a player of whom also needs to improve her shooting accuracy percentage (72%). If they can get a couple of goals in front, you can’t help but feel that the Thunderbirds confidence will falter.
Key match-ups:
The Caitlin Thwaites (GS) and Kate Shimmon (GK) head-to-head is one to get excited for. Despite playing in struggling sides, both have been impressive in their own personal performances this season and will be looking to carry their respected teams to victory.
