Late rally cements second spot for Force

Late rally cements second spot for Force 

The Fujifilm Force heaved a big sigh of relief heading into next week’s National Bank Cup netball semifinals following a shaky dress rehearsal today.

The Force squeezed out a tough 53-49 win over a determined Genesis Energy Shakers to clinch second place in the top four to preserve the double life status awarded to the first and second placed teams.

The Ascot Park Hotel Southern Sting stitched up top spot and a home semifinal against the Force next Friday with a late charging 46-54 win over the Goldair Flames.

Third placed Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic will meet the Trusts Diamonds in Rotorua on Sunday in the second sudden death semifinal.

The Magic ground out a 45-41 win over the Otago Rebels while the Diamonds were comfortable 62-43 winners over the More FM Flyers in final round robin matches over the weekend.

Conceding a distinct height advantage and up against a Force team stacked with internationals, the Shakers belied their status on the table with an inspiring effort.

In by far their best outing of the season, the Shakers took a three goal advantage into the last quarter. With five minutes remaining, the Force sparked into life with some strong play from defender Leana de Bruin and shooter Catherine Latu to halt the Shakers momentum.

``We were lucky to get away with the win,’’ Force coach Yvonne Willering said.

``Everyone had errors today but full credit to the Shakers. It was their last game and they were always going to come out firing. If I didn’t know better I would say we were already looking ahead to the semis.’’  

The Force looked flat throughout much of the match while the Shakers plugged away at their own game plan with a steady, controlled brand of netball.

Shooters Jamilah Gupwell and Lovila Paki did their bit to keep the Shakers level-pegging while last line of defence Victoria Smith excelled at the other end of the court.

Willering’s five changes at halftime failed to deter the Shakers but the re-introduction of the towering Latu in the final quarter did have an impact. Enjoying a greater share of the possession eventually helped propel the Force into the lead.

Steady and accurate under the hoop, Latu converted 33 shots from 34 attempts. She was well supported by Megan Dehn, who had 18 from 21.

Silver Ferns shooter Maria Tutaia sparkled for the Diamonds with a 93 percent success rate against the Flyers when she nailed 29 of 31 shots.

The combined skills of shooters Daneka Wipiiti and Donna Wilkins steered the Sting to their sixth straight win of the season and a home semifinal.

The Sting topped the table with a powerful final quarter burst to end the Flames season.

In front of a record National Bank Cup crowd of 6000, in Christchurch, the Sting soaked up big pressure from the Flames for three-quarters of the match before unleashing their trademark dominance in the closing quarter.

``I was happy because it was a really hard-fought match,’’ Sting coach Robyn Broughton said.

``They (Flames) took it to us and played really well. They did a good job on us and you could feel they were really hungry for it and we had to absorb all that.

``We did absorb it and then came away.’’

Remember to check out Netball New Zealand's website http://www.netballnz.co.nz/ for the latest competition results and netball news. 

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