Giants bottle Lightning for rare back-to-back wins
The Giants have notched a two-year first and jumped off the bottom of the Super Netball table thanks to a dominant 78-68 defeat of Sunshine Coast.
The Lightning had beaten the Giants by 18 goals earlier this season but the third-placed side were off the pace at Ken Rosewall Arena on Sunday as the hosts led by as many as 20 in the third term.
A three-quarter time rocket from Lightning coach Belinda Reynolds finally woke her side up, but a 23-15 final term was too little, too late.
It was the first time the Giants have won back-to-back games in two years and saw them jump above the battling Queensland Firebirds and off the bottom of the ladder.
They're now 3-7 and three wins outside the top four with four regular-season games remaining.
"It's amazing. We took so much belief after last week (defeating Adelaide) we wanted to be more consistent and really put our foot on the throat when we are in front," goal attack Sophie Dwyer said.
"We're pretty bad at defending leads. It's great to see us do that and this is just the start of the rest of our season."
Dwyer was awarded player of the match after making 32-of-35 attempts and assisting on 12 of 14 feeds to shooter Jo Harton.
"Jo and I are really happy with our connection last week ... we love playing together and are having so much fun, loving netball at the moment," she said.
Cara Koenen didn't miss last week but was 35-of-41 on Sunday as the Giants applied all sorts of pressure on the Sunshine Coast shooter.
The Lightning (6-4) held onto third spot from the in-form Melbourne Vixens, who they host next week.
Their tough run to the finals pits them against every other team in the top five.
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The Advertiser
9 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Giants bottle Lightning for rare back-to-back wins
The Giants have notched a two-year first and jumped off the bottom of the Super Netball table thanks to a dominant 78-68 defeat of Sunshine Coast. The Lightning had beaten the Giants by 18 goals earlier this season but the third-placed side were off the pace at Ken Rosewall Arena on Sunday as the hosts led by as many as 20 in the third term. A three-quarter time rocket from Lightning coach Belinda Reynolds finally woke her side up, but a 23-15 final term was too little, too late. It was the first time the Giants have won back-to-back games in two years and saw them jump above the battling Queensland Firebirds and off the bottom of the ladder. They're now 3-7 and three wins outside the top four with four regular-season games remaining. "It's amazing. We took so much belief after last week (defeating Adelaide) we wanted to be more consistent and really put our foot on the throat when we are in front," goal attack Sophie Dwyer said. "We're pretty bad at defending leads. It's great to see us do that and this is just the start of the rest of our season." Dwyer was awarded player of the match after making 32-of-35 attempts and assisting on 12 of 14 feeds to shooter Jo Harton. "Jo and I are really happy with our connection last week ... we love playing together and are having so much fun, loving netball at the moment," she said. Cara Koenen didn't miss last week but was 35-of-41 on Sunday as the Giants applied all sorts of pressure on the Sunshine Coast shooter. The Lightning (6-4) held onto third spot from the in-form Melbourne Vixens, who they host next week. Their tough run to the finals pits them against every other team in the top five. The Giants have notched a two-year first and jumped off the bottom of the Super Netball table thanks to a dominant 78-68 defeat of Sunshine Coast. The Lightning had beaten the Giants by 18 goals earlier this season but the third-placed side were off the pace at Ken Rosewall Arena on Sunday as the hosts led by as many as 20 in the third term. A three-quarter time rocket from Lightning coach Belinda Reynolds finally woke her side up, but a 23-15 final term was too little, too late. It was the first time the Giants have won back-to-back games in two years and saw them jump above the battling Queensland Firebirds and off the bottom of the ladder. They're now 3-7 and three wins outside the top four with four regular-season games remaining. "It's amazing. We took so much belief after last week (defeating Adelaide) we wanted to be more consistent and really put our foot on the throat when we are in front," goal attack Sophie Dwyer said. "We're pretty bad at defending leads. It's great to see us do that and this is just the start of the rest of our season." Dwyer was awarded player of the match after making 32-of-35 attempts and assisting on 12 of 14 feeds to shooter Jo Harton. "Jo and I are really happy with our connection last week ... we love playing together and are having so much fun, loving netball at the moment," she said. Cara Koenen didn't miss last week but was 35-of-41 on Sunday as the Giants applied all sorts of pressure on the Sunshine Coast shooter. The Lightning (6-4) held onto third spot from the in-form Melbourne Vixens, who they host next week. Their tough run to the finals pits them against every other team in the top five. The Giants have notched a two-year first and jumped off the bottom of the Super Netball table thanks to a dominant 78-68 defeat of Sunshine Coast. The Lightning had beaten the Giants by 18 goals earlier this season but the third-placed side were off the pace at Ken Rosewall Arena on Sunday as the hosts led by as many as 20 in the third term. A three-quarter time rocket from Lightning coach Belinda Reynolds finally woke her side up, but a 23-15 final term was too little, too late. It was the first time the Giants have won back-to-back games in two years and saw them jump above the battling Queensland Firebirds and off the bottom of the ladder. They're now 3-7 and three wins outside the top four with four regular-season games remaining. "It's amazing. We took so much belief after last week (defeating Adelaide) we wanted to be more consistent and really put our foot on the throat when we are in front," goal attack Sophie Dwyer said. "We're pretty bad at defending leads. It's great to see us do that and this is just the start of the rest of our season." Dwyer was awarded player of the match after making 32-of-35 attempts and assisting on 12 of 14 feeds to shooter Jo Harton. "Jo and I are really happy with our connection last week ... we love playing together and are having so much fun, loving netball at the moment," she said. Cara Koenen didn't miss last week but was 35-of-41 on Sunday as the Giants applied all sorts of pressure on the Sunshine Coast shooter. The Lightning (6-4) held onto third spot from the in-form Melbourne Vixens, who they host next week. Their tough run to the finals pits them against every other team in the top five.
The Advertiser
9 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Housby heroics not enough as Vixens shoot to fourth
The Melbourne Vixens have defied a "lethal" Helen Housby to topple the ladder-leading NSW Swifts and move into Super Netball's top four. Sophie Garbin powered the Vixens' 70-68 win while player-of-the-match Jo Weston dominated defensively to inflict a second-straight defeat on the Swifts. It was party time on Sunday at John Cain Arena when Weston's long-range assist in the third quarter swelled the lead to 11 goals. But English star Housby was dealing in pairs, the veteran nailing eight-of-nine super shots to drag her side off the canvas. Her sixth got the margin back to four goals with three minutes to play, Housby then nailing two more on successive plays to make it a two-goal game in the final 30 seconds. From the restart Weston was then called for a held ball, but Swifts replacement shooter Sophie Fawns missed a super shot that would have levelled the game. "I'm happy we got that in the end ... the super-shot shooting from Helen and Sophie is just lethal," Weston said. "It was a real team effort and I was proud of our attack, they were really smart and worked the ball, drew penalties when they needed to and finished it off." A fourth-straight Vixens (6-4) win allowed them jump the Thunderbirds (5-5) into fourth with four regular-season games to play. "Just being really chaotic and having fun out there," Weston said of their intent. "We've been trying to emphasis the work rate and decision making … we weren't seeing the option because we weren't working for each other." Earlier, Garbin (47-of-49 attempts) and Austin (17-of-19 with 26 assists from 28 feeds) had spearheaded the Vixens' charge, the hosts forging clear after scores had been locked at 20-20 early in the second quarter. While assured of a finals berth, the Swifts' (8-2) loss came a week after Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard's 71 goals for the West Coast Fever ended their eight-game winning start to the season. The Melbourne Vixens have defied a "lethal" Helen Housby to topple the ladder-leading NSW Swifts and move into Super Netball's top four. Sophie Garbin powered the Vixens' 70-68 win while player-of-the-match Jo Weston dominated defensively to inflict a second-straight defeat on the Swifts. It was party time on Sunday at John Cain Arena when Weston's long-range assist in the third quarter swelled the lead to 11 goals. But English star Housby was dealing in pairs, the veteran nailing eight-of-nine super shots to drag her side off the canvas. Her sixth got the margin back to four goals with three minutes to play, Housby then nailing two more on successive plays to make it a two-goal game in the final 30 seconds. From the restart Weston was then called for a held ball, but Swifts replacement shooter Sophie Fawns missed a super shot that would have levelled the game. "I'm happy we got that in the end ... the super-shot shooting from Helen and Sophie is just lethal," Weston said. "It was a real team effort and I was proud of our attack, they were really smart and worked the ball, drew penalties when they needed to and finished it off." A fourth-straight Vixens (6-4) win allowed them jump the Thunderbirds (5-5) into fourth with four regular-season games to play. "Just being really chaotic and having fun out there," Weston said of their intent. "We've been trying to emphasis the work rate and decision making … we weren't seeing the option because we weren't working for each other." Earlier, Garbin (47-of-49 attempts) and Austin (17-of-19 with 26 assists from 28 feeds) had spearheaded the Vixens' charge, the hosts forging clear after scores had been locked at 20-20 early in the second quarter. While assured of a finals berth, the Swifts' (8-2) loss came a week after Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard's 71 goals for the West Coast Fever ended their eight-game winning start to the season. The Melbourne Vixens have defied a "lethal" Helen Housby to topple the ladder-leading NSW Swifts and move into Super Netball's top four. Sophie Garbin powered the Vixens' 70-68 win while player-of-the-match Jo Weston dominated defensively to inflict a second-straight defeat on the Swifts. It was party time on Sunday at John Cain Arena when Weston's long-range assist in the third quarter swelled the lead to 11 goals. But English star Housby was dealing in pairs, the veteran nailing eight-of-nine super shots to drag her side off the canvas. Her sixth got the margin back to four goals with three minutes to play, Housby then nailing two more on successive plays to make it a two-goal game in the final 30 seconds. From the restart Weston was then called for a held ball, but Swifts replacement shooter Sophie Fawns missed a super shot that would have levelled the game. "I'm happy we got that in the end ... the super-shot shooting from Helen and Sophie is just lethal," Weston said. "It was a real team effort and I was proud of our attack, they were really smart and worked the ball, drew penalties when they needed to and finished it off." A fourth-straight Vixens (6-4) win allowed them jump the Thunderbirds (5-5) into fourth with four regular-season games to play. "Just being really chaotic and having fun out there," Weston said of their intent. "We've been trying to emphasis the work rate and decision making … we weren't seeing the option because we weren't working for each other." Earlier, Garbin (47-of-49 attempts) and Austin (17-of-19 with 26 assists from 28 feeds) had spearheaded the Vixens' charge, the hosts forging clear after scores had been locked at 20-20 early in the second quarter. While assured of a finals berth, the Swifts' (8-2) loss came a week after Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard's 71 goals for the West Coast Fever ended their eight-game winning start to the season.
Perth Now
10 hours ago
- Perth Now
Giants bottle Lightning for rare back-to-back wins
The Giants have notched a two-year first and jumped off the bottom of the Super Netball table thanks to a dominant 78-68 defeat of Sunshine Coast. The Lightning had beaten the Giants by 18 goals earlier this season but the third-placed side were off the pace at Ken Rosewall Arena on Sunday as the hosts led by as many as 20 in the third term. A three-quarter time rocket from Lightning coach Belinda Reynolds finally woke her side up, but a 23-15 final term was too little, too late. It was the first time the Giants have won back-to-back games in two years and saw them jump above the battling Queensland Firebirds and off the bottom of the ladder. They're now 3-7 and three wins outside the top four with four regular-season games remaining. "It's amazing. We took so much belief after last week (defeating Adelaide) we wanted to be more consistent and really put our foot on the throat when we are in front," goal attack Sophie Dwyer said. "We're pretty bad at defending leads. It's great to see us do that and this is just the start of the rest of our season." Dwyer was awarded player of the match after making 32-of-35 attempts and assisting on 12 of 14 feeds to shooter Jo Harton. "Jo and I are really happy with our connection last week ... we love playing together and are having so much fun, loving netball at the moment," she said. Cara Koenen didn't miss last week but was 35-of-41 on Sunday as the Giants applied all sorts of pressure on the Sunshine Coast shooter. The Lightning (6-4) held onto third spot from the in-form Melbourne Vixens, who they host next week. Their tough run to the finals pits them against every other team in the top five.
