Melbourne Vixens steamroll rivals Magpies in sudden-death semi final to keep their title hopes alive
Why the Melbourne Vixens hold no fears for their next opponents New South Wales Swifts after they turned the tables on cross-town rivals Collingwood to lock in a preliminary final date.
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Melbourne Vixens coach Simone McKinnis says her team’s winless record against the New South Wales Swifts this season is irrelevant as they prepare for a preliminary final showdown in Sydney.
The Vixens stormed into the second week of the Super Netball finals after turning the tables on their cross-town rivals the Magpies on the most important stage with a commanding 13-goal win in their sudden-death semi-final.
In the first all-Melbourne Super Netball final, the Vixens snapped their late-season form slump in emphatic fashion to score a 62-49 victory at the State Netball and Hockey Centre.
The Vixens had lost both their matches against the Magpies this season, including last week’s 11-goal final round loss that allowed Collingwood to steal the final place in the top four.
They also lost both their outings against the Swifts this season — by 10 goals in Round 5 at home and six goals in Round 12 in Sydney.
And McKinnis was confident of repeating Sunday’s result against the Swifts, who suffered a 10-goal loss to the Sunshine Coast in the major semi-final on Saturday.
A grand final berth against dual Super Netball champions the Lightning will be at stake.
“That’s what we said from the start, (it’s) finals, it’s quite irrelevant (what happened during the season),” McKinnis said.
“Each time we have played them, (they) have come off a loss to Lightning and were always ready to go.
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“I would love nothing more than to go up to Sydney and give it a really good show.
“Certainly last week was tough. But when I woke up on the Monday I was excited, I’m like there is a way that’s there and we’re going to do it. I felt that all week.
“I knew before the game this morning that they were going to come out and give it everything they’ve got and it’s going to be good.”
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The Vixens had lost three straight games entering the finals, while the Magpies had the momentum on the back of three consecutive wins. But the Vixens stamped their authority on the game from the start in a 20-9 opening quarter.
They were fuelled by a stand-out midcourt performance from captain and match MVP Kate Moloney in centre on in-form Magpie Ash Brazill, while goal attack Tegan Philp (29 goals from 36 attempts) also impressed alongside Caitlin Thwaites (29/33) in the goal circle.
Magpies goal shooter Shimona Nelson top-scored for the game (42 from 46), while the club later revealed veteran goal attack Nat Medhurst, who had been quiet (7/9), had played the match with two cracked ribs.
There was a scare for the Vixens when goal defence Jo Weston appeared to hurt herself taking an intercept in the third quarter, but after being assessed by medical staff at a time out she played out the match.
McKinnis said there had been no “magic” to the Vixens’ win, praising their defensive intensity.
“It’s just hitting that court with fight and purpose and intensity and we did that really well,” McKinnis said.
The loss for the Magpies ended a challenging season after the loss of star midcourters Madi and Kelsey Browne to serious knee injuries.
Assistant coach Nicole Richardson, who has been in charge with Kate Upton in the absence of head coach Rob Wright after the loss of his mother, said it was a disappointing way to finish the season after the fight the team had showed to reach the finals.
“It’s a real positive that we made it this far,” Richardson said.
“From my perspective and the girls’ perspective, it’s disappointing. We weren’t here just to make up the numbers, I thought we could have really challenged.
“But to put things into perspective and the year that we’ve had, losing the Browne sisters and then with Rob and his mum the past month, so it has been a tough road for us, so from a club perspective we’re very proud of what we’ve achieved. It was disappointing that it finished this way.’’
Despite fears of a major lockout for fans after the semi-final was forced to be played at the SNHC due to an Esports event at Melbourne Arena, the crowd for yesterday’s match (2522) did not hit capacity.
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