Jets flying, Titans on their trail: HART Sapphire Series reaches mid-season tensions after round five upsets
The Ipswich Jets and Gold Coast Titans are neck-and-neck for top-of-ladder royalty after five rounds of the 2023 HART Sapphire Series, while Brisbane North Cougars dwell on second loss.
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The Sunshine Coast Thunder have put a damper on the Bond University Bull Sharks’ hopes of their first 2023 HART Sapphire Series win.
On home soil, the Thunder came away with a seven-point victory despite losing their captain to injury in round four.
Head coach Simone Nalatu was impressed with how her side kept their composure throughout the game.
“We were tested because Bond had Ash Ervin playing for most of the game.
“But we needed to have that quality defensive line and to be forced to stick with what we wanted to do,” Nalatu said.
“We kept to our game plan … used the ball really well and our centre pass conversion was a lot better than it had been over the past couple of games.”
It was no easy feat for the Thunder line-up, with Kaylin Van Greunen to defend in the circle on top of Bond’s captain Hannah Le Sage who shot at 100%.
“They have a great scoring target down their end with Kaylin.”
Nalatu was particularly impressed by young gun Jada Delaney, who at just 16 years of age is already versing some of the league’s best.
“She absolutely had a cracker,” she said.
The spectacular performance is just another step in the right direction for Delaney’s netball career.
“It is a massive step up from Ruby to Sapphire, but every time she’s been on court she has gotten better and better.
“For her to start and play the whole game, and get the ball for us when we really needed it was fantastic,” Nalatu said.
The victory was bittersweet for captain Bridey Condren, who watched from the sidelines with an ankle injury from round four against the TAE Aerospace Jets.
Condren went down in the circle with five minutes to go in the final quarter.
Nalatu is confident the injury will not impact her side long-term.
“She’ll get reassessed this week.
“It looks minor, but we certainly don’t want to put that under any risks knowing where we are.”
The 57-50 win is Thunder’s second for the season, putting them in fourth place behind Titans, Jets and Cougars.
It was not the same fairytale ending for Thunder in the Ruby league, with Bond coming out on top to win 42-34.
Without a win so far this Ruby series season, Thunder sit in seventh place only ahead of the wooden spoon Panthers on goal percentage.
Elsewhere in the Sapphire competition, the Ipswich Jets have claimed an almighty 66-63 victory over a flustered ACU Brisbane North Cougars side.
The Jets home game brought high energy from fans, which manifested into a close match-up Cougars were not expecting.
After admitting their first defeat in three years last week to the Gold Coast Titans, Cougars are now sitting third on the ladder with two losses behind Jets and Titans.
The win puts them on top of the Sapphire ladder, with a Titans v Jets head-to-head still to come.
In the Ruby league, it was the Cougars who claimed victory 53-45.
It was a close contest for one, and a thrashing for the other when the Carina Leagues Club Tigers faced off against the Gold Coast Titans.
The Ruby side were favourites going into the match but Titans stayed hot on their tails the whole game, only going down by three points.
Key shooter Tia Crombie remained out of play with an ankle injury which is expected to rule her out for the next two weeks.
The Sapphire game was a different story, as the Titans ran away with the lead from the get-go, eventually winning 63-38.
Meanwhile the Brisbane South Wildcats enjoyed a bye in the Sapphire draw and watched their Ruby team go head-to-head against the Barastoc Panthers, who are still chasing a win.
The 53-44 scoreline was the closest this far, but the Toowoomba side have much work to do leading up to the halfway point of the season.
Their best chance at a victory will be against the Thunder, who currently sit above them on goal percentage.
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