Sapphire Series live stream: Gold Coast Titans take on Brisbane South Wildcats

The Titans have pulled out all stops in a brilliant display of long-range shooting to take down a gallant Wildcats. Watch the REPLAY.

The Gold Coast Titans have drawn level with the Jets at the top of the Sapphire Series ladder after a dominant display of shooting against the Wildcats.

The Titans and Wildcats traded long-range bombs down the stretch as both sides made good use of the Super Shot window in the final quarter.

WATCH THE FULL MATCH REPLAY IN THE PLAYER ABOVE

But in the end it was Titans goaler Josie Bingham who won the battle with her rivals, nailing 13 two-pointers to finish the game with a personal haul of 54 goals.

While the Wildcats had managed to reduce the margin to only five goals midway through the final quarter, Bingham’s hot streak soon put her side out of reach as they cruised to a 69-54 win at Nissan Arena.

The clash was a make-up game from Round 3, with the win taking the Titans to 5-2 for the season with one draw proving the difference between them and rivals Ipswich.

Preview

While the majority of the competition enjoys a week off, Gold Coast Titans and Brisbane South Wildcats hit the Nissan Arena on Saturday for their round 3 makeup match.

And with the spotlight comes a conundrum for Wildcats coach Megan Lynch. How does she fill the void left by Firebirds Futures duo Ali Miller and Chaisse Vassell?

The pair are all-but confirmed as absentees for five weeks (June 1- July 7) as they play in Netball Australia’s pilot program, the Suncorp Super Netball Reserves.

There was little between the teams when they met earlier in 2024.

Catch the game LIVE and EXCLUSIVE on KommunityTV from 4pm on Saturday. Check out the LIVE STREAM schedule below.

While Miller is a definite out, Vassell’s presence is yet to be confirmed – leaving Lynch little time to make up her mind a possible replacement.

Wildcats already boast one of the youngest rosters, with a shooting circle average age of just 18.5 years.

“Without Chaisse, I’ll have to bring in another Ruby player and that makes our attacking end even younger,” Lynch said.

“I have to look at how they play and what’s next.”

Toying with options, Lynch considered the possibility of bringing a circle defence into the mix instead.

“There’s a lot of flexibility there, which is awesome,” she said.

That move would see middies Tahlia Evans and Maddie Davies take care of the attacking midcourt while circle defender Halle Geyer shuffles out to the WD role.

Action from the first Titans v Wildcats clash of 2024.

This move would also give Lynch the option to play shooters Zara Van Gorp and Kydan Tuapou in the WA position if needed.

Conscious of how her decision will impact both Sapphire and Ruby, Lynch is likely to make a late call.

“I still have enough coverage … it just depends on how training goes for Ruby.”

Quandary aside, she is confident her Wildcats have what it takes to get over their sky blue rivals.

“I believe we can beat Titans and I believe there is no one in the competition we can’t beat on our given day,” she said.

“It will come down to those young ones staying in the contest because Titans are physical, strong to the ball and don’t pull out of anything.

“Titans defensive end is a very strong unit … it’s just going to take a strong effort from everybody.”

Back in round 1, the Wildcats clawed their way – in the space of five minutes – from 12 points down to lose by just three, all thanks to the Super Shot efforts of Miller and Tuapou.

The dynamic without Miller may be different, but the concept remains the same for Titans: stop that Super Shot.

Can the Wildcats knock over the Titans on Saturday?

“When the Super Shot is on your side it’s great, but 7 out of 10 times it’s not,” Titans coach Temepara Bailey said.

“We’ve had to look at different strategies in attack and defence to be in the game and compete.

“With any of the teams, you can see who is their two-point go-to.

“What we do in that first 10 minutes before we come to the Super Shot is going to be key.”

Bailey was outright is admitting the game would be a tough one at best.

“There’s no team you can take lightly and Wildcats have been upsetting a few teams.

“They’ve got strength down the court.”

Both sides last week walked away with a win and loss, though Bailey isn’t getting caught up on the details.

“When you lose, you turn over every rock and have a look at what went wrong … we take a positive out of it as well,” she said.

“It’s a clean slate every week.

The loss of Ali Miller could be key.

“For us, it’s about going back to when we versed them to see what worked for us and what their strengths were as well..

“We’re OK with our game plan and structures, it’s just about executing them consistently which has been our issue.”

Titans are nursing no injuries this week and will take to court with a full line-up, conscious of needing to keep a consistent and clear mind ahead of each game.

“We just need to make sure we’re improving every week,” Bailey said.

“You don’t want to peak too soon and I think that’s what happened to us last year … only lost two games all year and then choked in the semi.

“I’m happy with where we’re at.”

Originally published as Sapphire Series live stream: Gold Coast Titans take on Brisbane South Wildcats