Super Netball Finals: How Melbourne Vixens plan to bounce back from worst loss of the season for a do or die preliminary final
Humbled by the Adelaide Thunderbirds in the first week of Super Netball finals, the Melbourne Vixens are applying ‘the heat’ internally to rediscover their spark, which they will desperately need against West Coast Fever.
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Melbourne Vixens players have “put the heat on each other” to find their starting spark as they aim to bounce back from their biggest loss of the season in a do-or-die Super Netball preliminary final against the West Coast Fever.
Saved by the double-chance, the Vixens will be fighting to keep their 2024 premiership hopes alive when they battle the Fever at John Cain Arena on Saturday after their brutal major semi-final loss to the Adelaide Thunderbirds.
Defending champions Adelaide surged into the Super Netball grand final with a 25-goal win over the Vixens, who have now lost three of their past four matches.
Vixens’ coach Simone McKinnis conceded her players were stung by their performance against the Thunderbirds, but had to quickly “reset” to find a way to take down the Fever – and the league’s most dominant goaler – for their second match-up in under a month.
“Everyone was really hurt …. but you just have to reset and go again,” McKinnis said.
“You can’t change that (performance), the only thing we can do is look after this weekend.
“It was disappointing and we have acknowledged that it was not good enough and that we’re better than that and that’s got to be a driver for this weekend.
“They have put the heat on each other. It is everybody …. it’s not just one or two people, it is across the board and everybody knows that.
“It is important that you have got to be able to lift each other up and get each other through it because all that matters is how we respond to that.
“Every team wants to be in that grand final. There are three teams left, two teams have an opportunity to go into the grand final.”
McKinnis said regaining their starting spark would be a key to the Vixens hitting back in Saturday’s preliminary final.
The Thunderbirds pounced on the Vixens 19-13 in the opening quarter in their semi-final, but Melbourne’s starting intensity has wavered in the back-end of the season, having only won one first quarter in the past four games.
“You have got to get into the game right from the word go and we just didn’t have that start and that intensity that you needed and against a side like Thunderbirds. It just snowballed from there unfortunately,” McKinnis said.
“What had been a strength of ours was our starts and we have got to find that strong start again. I think that has been one of the issues for us.
“Every individual has their different preparation and needs it going into a game. It’s what you bring as a group.
“This is do-or-die, so if that doesn’t bring your hunger and your desperation and your intensity to the contest and your want to compete every step, then nothing will.”
Fever’s Jamaican shooting powerhouse Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard looms as a towering obstacle for the Vixens in their path towards the grand final, but McKinnis said the task of stopping her would not fall simply on her circle defenders.
“She is amazing down in that goal circle there is no doubt about it,” McKinnis said.
“But that’s where it comes down to the full team. It’s about the team defence and I think it is that show of strength to do the work, not just in that circle but all over the court.
“That is going to be really important and get that drive in attack from just the intensity of what we bring to our defence.”
The Vixens suffered a heartbreaking one-goal loss to the Fever when they met at John Cain Arena just weeks ago in round 13.
McKinnis hoped her team could make sure they milked their home court advantage this time.
“I think it is good that it’s not so long ago that we played them,” McKinnis said.
“So obviously we can look at that game, but also look at the Lightning and Fever (semi-final).
“It is a positive to be at home. We have had so much support and great crowds here, so that is exciting for us.
“We want to put out a performance that the fans and the supporters can be proud of because we know that was disappointing for everybody, not just ourselves last weekend.”
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Originally published as Super Netball Finals: How Melbourne Vixens plan to bounce back from worst loss of the season for a do or die preliminary final
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