Tactix Remain Unbeaten By Southern Rivals

The VIP Frames and Trusses Tactix came away with a convincing 57-50 win over the Ascot Park Hotel Southern Steel in their first match of the ANZ Premiership in a high quality game of Sunday night netball.

Honouring the memory of the late Kelly Hutton, who passed away in 2023 from ovarian cancer, and her sister Megan Hutton, the Hutton Family Trophy will be up for grabs every time the southern derby takes place.

The Tactix maintained their dominance over their southern rival, going unbeaten by the Steel in their last 9 matches, with a passionate home crowd on the edge of their seats while the teams fought for ball possession.

Coming onto the court for her debut, Holly Mathers took on the starting position at centre commanding the midcourt and convincingly feeding the ball into the goal circle.

Captain Erikana Pedersen led the team through a close first quarter achieving a four point lead but with equal ball possession between the sides, the Tactix went into halftime with only a one point advantage.

With the match neck-and-neck through the second quarter, the Steel stole valuable possession with intercepts in the midcourt changing the tide for the two teams, with the Steel leading at halftime.

Goal shoot Ellie Bird set the winning tone, maintaining approximately 90% shooting accuracy throughout the first half while Martina Salmon (on her debut for the Tactix) brought the heat to the goal circle, sinking the first two-point goal for the Tactix in the third quarter.

Both sides utilised the new time-out rule, taking the opportunity to break the flow of play during the second quarter, while the Tactix remained conservative on 2-point supershot attempts, with all shots (bar one) achieved from within the goal circle.

The international pairing of Jane Watson and Karin Burger were hot on defence, maintaining pressure in the Steel shooting circle, proving to be critical following the Steel’s twelve, 2-point shot missed attempts.

The victory is an early statement from the Tactix, and is a testament to Head Coach Donna Wilkins’ early work in shaping the team into a connected, competitive unit.

Next week the team takes on the Stars at Pulman Arena in Auckland.

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