Local favourites Kingdom Stars blow Tornadoes away in tense TNL Division 2 final
Home team the KZN Kingdom Stars boosted their hopes of a return to the top table when they beat the Western Cape Tornadoes in Saturday evening's Telkom Netball League Division 2 final at the Durban ICC.
They will face the Baobabs, who finished bottom of Division 1, in Sunday's relegation play-off for a place in Division 1 next season.
There was little to choose from between the rivals in a low-scoring first quarter that ended 8-7 to the Tornadoes. Both teams were guilty of missing easy shooting chances as they matched each other for defensive intensity in the high-stakes clash.
The error count was also high from both sides, and that continued into the second quarter. The match was turning into a battle of attrition, withy neither side able to grab a stranglehold on proceedings. Even the vibrant, chanting home crowd struggled to lift the game from its stupor as it became increasingly physical.
The Tornadoes' 50% shooting percentage was particularly alarming, with goal shooter Rehana Noah and goal attack Kelly Ann Gouws misfiring. The Stars' goal shooter, Aphiwe Thusini started to find her range as they pulled four goals clear (17-13) with more than three minutes to go in the quarter.
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