A horror first half against the Collingwood Magpies consigned the NSW Swifts to a Round 1 Suncorp Super Netball defeat at Melbourne’s John Cain Arena on Saturday night.
The 71-63 score reflected a game which was, in essence, decided in the first quarter.
The Magpies won that period 20-13 and from then played well enough to keep an out-of-sort Swifts side at bay for the remainder of the contest.
A standout performance from Shimona Nelson, who scored 53 goals from 53 attempts, was the catalyst behind the Victorians’ win, while the Swifts failed to find a consistent rhythm all evening.
NSW head coach Briony Akle was blunt in her post-game assessment:
“Firstly, the Magpies played some great stuff out there and I thought Shimona looked unplayable at times, so well done to them,” she said.
“But I’m pretty disappointed that we couldn’t convert a host of turnover possessions. It was a game the we didn’t really allow ourselves to fire a shot in, but we still could’ve won going into the last five minutes.
“That’s the positive, but it’s equally a frustration. This side has won two titles in recent times so I want to see that experience used better in the coming rounds.
“We should not be letting teams rattle us like the Pies did in that first quarter.
“It not a sprint but we’ll need to see a massive improvement next week in Adelaide, because they are in form.”
The sides traded turnovers in the opening exchanges in what was a scrappy first five minutes but Collingwood had enough to open an up a three-goal lead which forced Akle into a timeout.
Jodi-Ann Ward was making big plays for the Pies as NSW struggled to find a path to goal, and when they turned over possession Nelson and ex-Swifts champion Sophie Garbin were quick to punish them.
At the first break the hosts led 20-13 and the Swifts needed to regroup, although debutant Romelda Aiken-George was keeping them in touching distance under the post.
Akle changed her attack up in the second quarter, introducing Sophie Fawns at Goal Attack to form a moving circle with Helen Housby.
The seven-time Premiers seemed to click better in attack but they weren’t able to make inroads into the commanding lead their hosts had built.
Collingwood were getting huge return from Nelson, who shot a perfect 30 from 30 in the first half, and in the second Super Shot period of the game the Swifts looked pensive on attack as Ward and Geva Mentor pounced on any hesitation.
It could have been worse but for the defensive work of Sarah Klau and Teigan O’Shannassy, while Maddy Turner – playing the second quarter at wing defence – gave the home side more food for thought on approach.
A Housby Super Shot helped ensure the Swifts scored the last three goals of the half to keep the margin at the break at 10.
Mentor and Ward continued to torment the NSW attack at the start of the second half. Despite the Swifts defence securing three turnovers, they were unable to convert any of them and their opponents kept the 10-goal lead intact.
An intercept from O’Shannassy helped reduce the deficit to single figures, and the visitors had plenty of turnover chances to get within range but four Garbin Super Shots kept them in the rear-view mirror.
NSW did win the third quarter 19-18, however, the Pies led by nine at the last break.
In the final quarter it was more of the same. The Swifts looked the better side throughout the second half but when it came to making it stick they couldn’t convert the gains needed to reel the Pies in.
Next up for the Swifts is a Round 2 visit to Adelaide to face the Thunderbirds on Saturday 25 March.
Quarter Scores:
Q1: Swifts 13 Pies 20
Q2: Swifts 29 Pies 39 (16-19)
Q3: Swifts 48 Pies 57 (19-18)
Q4: Swifts 63 Pies 71 (15-14)
Swifts Starting 7: GS Romelda Aiken-George, GA Helen Housby, WA Paige Hadley, C Maddy Proud, WD Allie Smith, GD Maddy Turner, GK Sarah Klau
Reserves (all used): Teigan O'Shannassy, Tayla Fraser, Sophie Fawns
Match Stats: View full match stats HERE
Swifts Tickets: Get your 2023 Swifts tickets HERE
