The NSW Swifts may be sitting two wins clears at the top of the Suncorp Super Netball ladder but the challenges are about to go up a level this weekend.
There are few tougher places to win in netball than the Sunshine Coast Lightning’s jam-packed arena at Sippy Downs, and head coach Briony Akle knows only too well how hard it can be.
“We’ve had just a few wins competitive wins there, and they were by the slimmest of margins,” she said.
“But when we’ve lost we’ve often been taught a lesson so our group are well aware of what lies ahead on Saturday night.”
The Swifts and Lightning are no strangers to playing each other in big games, most notably the 2019 Grand Final when NSW broke an 11-year Premiership drought.
In fact, this Saturday’s Suncorp Super Netball Round 7 fixture will be the first top-two clash between the sides since that time.
While the Lightning side today may look very different, the Swifts still have the likes of Paige Hadley, Maddy Turner, Sarah Klau and Helen Housby who vividly remember the rivalry in its heyday.
The Lightning, meanwhile, have former Swift Steph Fretwell (nee Wood) and Cara Koenen who were part of that massive Grand Final day in Brisbane.
In fact Fretwell, who started her career at the Swifts and played back-to-back Grand Finals for the Club in 2015 and 2016 before moving the Queensland, is in line to play her 150th National League game.
So far this year it’s been the Swifts who’ve been the pacesetters with a 6-0 record, however, on Saturday night they’ll face a Lightning side in red-hot form.
“Last Sunday’s big win over the Vixens in Melbourne demonstrated that they are the real deal,” Akle said ahead of the trip to Queensland.
“I know that our defence has been getting some great headlines and rightly so, especially with Sezzy (Sarah Klau) and Tossy (Teigan O’Shannassy), but it is actually the Lightning who are topping all the numbers when it comes to defending their goal circle.
“Courtney Bruce is world-class, Tara Hinchcliffe is in career-best form and Ash Ervin’s stats are through the roof when she’s on court so we know our attack is in for their biggest test of the year so far.
“At the other end you have Steph, Cara and Reilley Batcheldor scoring for fun and being fed by the likes of Liz Watson and Leesa Mi Mi so the challenges don’t get any easier as you move up the court.
“But these are the big games you train for and I cannot think of a better way for us to get the measure of where we’re at.”
The Swifts go head-to-head with the Lightning on Saturday night at 5pm. The game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports, Kayo and Binge.
MATCH NOTES
- When the teams last met in Round 9 last season the Lightning defeated the Swifts 66-64 in Sydney.
- The Lightning lead head-to-head with 11 wins to the Swifts’ seven.
- The Lightning won both meetings in 2024 and the Swifts won the three meetings prior to that.
- The Lightning and Swifts have met on the Sunshine Coast on nine previous occasions with the Lightning winning seven and the Swifts two.
- Ten of the 18 previous meetings have been decided by five goals or less with three of those by one goal.
- The Lightning are coming off a 62-50 win over the Vixens in Melbourne in Round 6 and sit in second place on the ladder with four wins and two losses.
- The Swifts have sat at the top of the Super Netball ladder after five of the six rounds this season, they were in second place after round two.
- The Swifts are coming off an 82-69 Derby win over the Giants and are yet to lose this season and are two wins clear at the top of the SSN ladder.
- The Swifts and Lightning have both won two Premierships each in the Suncorp Super Netball era (2017 onwards), alongside the Adelaide Thunderbirds. Both the Swifts and Lightning have also contested three Grand Finals in the SSN era.
