Live stream: Hawks Netball face North East Blaze in Victoria Netball League 23&U Grand Final
Hawks Netball have clinched the Victoria Netball League 23&U grand final after unleashing an awesome quarter of sheer quality to blow opponents North East Blaze off the court. Full REPLAY.
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Hawks Netball have left North East Blaze in their wake with a blistering third quarter to claim the inaugural Victoria Netball League 23&U title in dominant fashion.
Slow out the blocks, the Hawks struggled early doors, with their goalscoring strike rate tumbling to just 65 per cent at one stage.
But the nervous jitters were quickly replaced with some scintillating ball movement as they charged back to almost level up with Blaze at quarter-time.
REPLAY
Victorian Netball League 23&U grand final – Hawks Netball v North East Blaze
Watch the full replay in the window above.
The second quarter was a seesawing contest with neither team able to stamp their authority, Blaze taking the same one-goal margin (25-24) to the main break.
But it was a different Hawks outfit when play resumed in the third as they totally dominated play, scoring six unanswered goals at one stage to take the game away from their rivals.
Their defence was instrumental in turning the game in their favour as they held Blaze to a measly six goals while scoring 15 themselves.
Blaze, who had played in two gutsy finals to reach the decider, attempted to raise one final effort in the last quarter, but it was to no avail as the Hawks cruised home (51-40).
Hawks 23&U coach Monique Lenehan-Moustafa
Coach so proud
Lenehan-Moustafa, who took out the title in her first year coaching, couldn’t have been more proud of her group.
“We set out with a goal this season and they’ve executed time and time again and all pushed in that game and lifted as a unit and that’s so special to watch,” Lenehan-Moustafa said.
Despite a slow start, which saw the Hawks trail 6-2 early, Lenehan-Moustafa said the Hawks knew what needed to be executed.
“It just kind of took ourselves a while to work ourselves into the game and really just trust, let the ball go and just be confident in each other because we knew it was there the whole time,” she said.
“It came in the second half, which is exactly what we needed.”
Head coach AJ Ballantyne
Moves made to win the match
Ballantyne said despite rotating goalers Hannah Keane and Keeley Burgmann at different stages, there were very little “moves” the coaches had to make to secure the win.
“It was more, the girls really took on the feedback well,” he said.
“Early on we were very hesitant with the ball and defensively we weren’t putting on the pressure outside the circle too.
“They were probably dropping back a little bit more to cover, Olivia Cawthray is obviously a huge threat in the circle.”
Captain Kaila Swindell
Hawks goal keeper Olivia Barnett would go on to be crowned player of the match, while captain Kaila Swindell praised her teammates, adding “we all really deserve this”.
“We went out and played for each other and got it done,” Swindell said.
The wing attack went on to thank all the yellow and brown faithful in the arena on Wednesday.
“It’s amazing, I think honestly we have the best crowd each week,” she said.
“We have the most supportive, loudest crowd and tonight was just unreal, honestly deafening, we couldn’t hear each other.”
Being on court/dealing with pressure
“We were pretty hesitant to let the ball go but we came together and spoke of the trust we had in each other, we could let those balls go and once we started doing that, we were playing freely and our defensive lifted across the whole court.”
PREVIEW
A big round 18 success over minor premier Hawks and two gutsy finals wins have North East Blaze as battle-tested as they can be as they bid to take home the inaugural Victoria Netball League 23&U title.
Blaze captain Madeline George believed the feeling of a one-goal overtime preliminary final win against Melbourne University, alongside their two-goal elimination victory over City West Falcons, made her teammates hungrier than ever heading into the decider against the Hawks on Wednesday night.
But while the Blaze capitalised on their moments last week, George, 21, felt the result was a culmination of a season’s build.
Catch the VNL’s night of nights LIVE on KommunityTV from 6.50pm on Wednesday with the 23/U decider. The main event starts at 8.20pm.
Check the full LIVE STREAM schedule below.
“I think we’ve really peaked at the right time but in overtime, it really came down to our mental strength,” the goal defender said.
“We have the skills, we have the game plan but it was more mentally switching on … understanding we’ve worked so hard and we really do want this.”
Seeking the club’s first flag since a 2019 division one title and third overall, 23&U coach Ella Bayliss felt the Blaze was buoyed by “gutsy” wins against the Lightning and Falcons, alongside their five-goal round 18 win over the Hawks.
“We take a lot of confidence in knowing we’re the only team to beat Hawks, but also really respect them and what they’re about, so we just have to treat it like any other game,” Bayliss said.
After starting the season 5-0, a mid-season lull saw the Blaze lose their next four as unavailabilities and injuries hit. But they regrouped to win 12 of their next 13 games and easily finish third.
Bayliss believed her team had developed a relentlessness in their game over the season.
“We have that ‘never say die attitude’,” Bayliss said.
Meanwhile, goal shooter Dee Dee Lambert and midcourter Annie Harvey – who suffered ACL injuries during the season – will both be on the bench for the Blaze on Wednesday.
“It makes us want to play for them,” George said.
But standing in the Blaze’s way is the Hawks, the standout home-and-away team whose only blemishes were the loss to Blaze and round one draw to Melbourne University.
A dominant 30-goal qualifying final win over the Lightning a fortnight ago further illuminated their strength.
Coach Monique Lenehan-Moustafa credited her team’s growing smarts and decision making this year, which they will deploy to counteract the Blaze’s pace and strong defensive unit in the decider.
Coming together as an “unit, rather than individuals”, Moustafa-Lenehan said her team had faced its challenges in games, such as trailing by as much as 12 goals and building their way back into winning positions.
“It shows we are a resilient group of people,” Lenehan-Moustafa said.
Hoping to top their dominant season off with a premiership, Lenehan-Moustafa said her team, led by captain Kaila Swindell, wanted to make their club proud.
“We know we’ve got a backing behind us and they’re there to support us no matter what,” she said.
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