A masterclass from Australian Diamonds defender Sarah Klau has led the reigning champion NSW Swifts to back-to-back Suncorp Super Netball wins for only the second time this season.
The two-time Premiership champion was a colossus for NSW who overcame a shaky start to dominate the Adelaide Thunderbirds in the second half and deliver a 14-goal (54-40) Round 9 win.
Having beaten the Giants last weekend, Briony Akle’s team were keen to back-up that huge effort and did so, but only after being well tested by the resilient South Australians.
The first half was in no way pretty but the second stanza – in which NSW restricted their opponents to just 17 goals – will have pleased head coach Briony Akle ahead of two huge games on the road next week against the Sunshine Coast Lightning (Tuesday) and the pace-setting Melbourne Vixens (Saturday).
Defence was the name of the game in the first quarter with Klau and Maddy Turner making life torrid for the visitors in the opening exchanges.
The duo’s excellence gave Kelly Singleton and Helen Housby the platform to put the Swifts 4-0 up and the Premiers looked composed and steady in attack.
However, the Thunderbirds aren’t regarded as one of the best defensive teams in the league for nothing and the international pairing of Shamera Sterling and Latanya Wilson responded in kind, disrupting the home team and thwarting any chance of the hosts establishing a commanding lead.
At quarter time the Swifts led 9-7 but neither attacking unit would have been happy with their return.
If the Swifts started well in the first quarter it was Adelaide’s turn to return the favour early in the second with Hannah Petty complementing her back two brilliantly to make the home side rush passes and turn possession over.
Luckily for NSW, Klau was in no mood to give her Lenize Potgieter or Tippah Dwan any easy attempts and heading into the second Power Five the Premiers still had a one-goal lead.
Housby and Dwan traded 2-pointers in the last five minutes before the break, but the 23-all halftime score-line spoke volumes about how scrappy the game was, and how well both defences were peforming.
The Swifts were more patient on their path to the post in early stages of the second half and rewarded the great work of their defenders to open up another four-goal lead.
However, the reply from the Thunderbirds was quick and effective. Wilson and Sterling pressured Housby and Sophie Fawns on every shot and were first to any breaking ball.
The next Power Five was where the game turned. Entering the period, the Swifts led by two but that lead had ballooned out to eight by the end of it.
The composure that was missing for many parts of the game returned as the Premiers lifted their intensity. Housby and Fawns ran great lines to draw the South Australian defence out of the circle and when the latter nailed a Super Shot on the buzzer the Swifts were in pole position.
From there they didn’t look back.
FULL MATCH STATS
