Latest news with #KateHeffernan
Otago Daily Times
15 hours ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Selby-Rickit leads attack on former team
Te Paea Selby-Rickit used to be a game winner for the Southern Steel. Now she has punished them as a playmaker for the Mainland Tactix and led her new team to a 57-49 victory in Invercargill on Saturday. The goal attack was utterly dominant across the court for the Tactix, who retained the Hutton Family Trophy and stayed at the top of the ANZ Premiership ladder. Selby-Rickit might have slotted only nine goals, but she dominated the attack end with 36 feeds, 27 goal assists and 17 centre pass receives. It was a frustrating result for the Steel, who let the Tactix get a roll on and were fighting back for much of the game. Steel co-captain Kate Heffernan made a welcome return from injury, albeit on managed minutes. Steel coach Wendy Frew said the result was a "tough one to swallow". "It's a tough one," Frew told TVNZ. "The girls really brought the energy and the hype, and we just couldn't get over the line. "It felt like it was a game we were coming back into. I never thought it was out of our reach. "When we get down by that, we're chasing twos and we missed a couple of rebounds on that two. "In terms of our defence game, we just need to be more united and get ball for each other. We're not working as units as well as we need to." Paris Lokotui — in her 50th game — came up with an intercept in the pocket and the Tactix moved swiftly to find Ellie Bird on the base. When the Steel let the ball do the work and moved it around the circle edge, it opened up their attacking end to find Georgia Heffernan on the base. Centre Kimiora Poi split the circle with a nice feed to Aliyah Dunn. Carys Stythe picked up an outside arm tip, but the Steel squandered the gain at the other end. But the Steel came home strongly at the tail end of the quarter to trail 16-14 at the first break. Selby-Rickit burnt the Steel on the centre pass, popping out the middle channel to allow depth on the Tactix second phase. That helped Bird, who held high in the circle to give herself space along the base. Lokotui again snaffled a cross-court ball and Selby-Rickit's shooter-to-shooter offloads were perfect. The Steel players put one another under pressure on the pass and the take, and Tactix defenders Jane Watson and Karin Burger confused the space. That helped give the visitors a 26-19 lead, their biggest of the game. Abby Lawson came on at goal defence in a bid to shut down Selby-Rickit and Kate Heffernan at wing defence. There was a lift in the defence pressure thanks to the changes. They put on a strong zone to shut down the middle for the Tactix attackers. But the Tactix's ball placement split the zone open to find a way to their shooters. They withstood the pressure and forged ahead for a 32-26 lead at halftime. Kate Heffernan moved into centre, shifting Poi back to wing attack for the Steel to start the third quarter. The Tactix picked up where they left off, finding Bird far too easily under the post. Once Stythe moved her feet around Bird, she grabbed a deflection — but again the Steel could not make it count. The Tactix went on a six-one run and suddenly led by 10. The Steel got stuck running, and not making any direct movements on attack, and defensively, they struggled to come off the body and pick up any ball. After a slow start to the quarter, the Steel came right in the final minutes. It took until the end of the third quarter before Dunn slotted the first accurate two-pointer of the game. The Steel picked up a good rebound at the other end, and Dunn followed up with another two to to trail 45-37 at the break. The Steel came back to level the final quarter 12-12 but were unable to get within five for a bonus point. ANZ Premiership The scores Mainland Tactix 57 Ellie Bird 37 (37/42), Te Paea Selby-Rickit 9 (9/11), Martina Salmon 11 (11/14) Southern Steel 49 Aliyah Dunn 42 (39/45), Georgia Heffernan 7 (7/14) Quarter scores: Tactix 16-14, 32-26, 47-37.
Otago Daily Times
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Heffernan vows to return
Kate Heffernan. Southern Steel co-captain Kate Heffernan will miss more rounds of the ANZ Premiership after hyperextending her knee. Heffernan, who missed the opener against the Mainland Tactix on Sunday, hurt her knee at training last week but is expected to return this season. Steel physio Stacey Allan said there was a robust recovery plan and Heffernan was making "positive progress" as they worked towards her return. While disappointed, Heffernan said her focus was on getting back on court. "Unfortunately, injuries are one of the realities of elite sport, but that doesn't make it any less heartbreaking not to be able to get out there with my team," Heffernan said. "We have all worked incredibly hard during the preseason and deserve to reap the rewards of that now the competition has started. "Watching from the sidelines definitely fuels my determination. I will be following the expert advice of our medical team to the letter and doing everything in my power to play as soon as I get the green light, but I know I have to be patient." The Silver Fern travelled to the Steel's opening game in a leadership role. "Naturally I want to be out there playing my part, but I have the utmost faith in our entire squad to get the job done regardless of who is wearing the bibs." The Steel head to Hamilton to play the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic on Monday.
RNZ News
14-05-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Steel's Kate Heffernan to miss more games after knee injury
Kate Heffernan. Photo: Photosport Steel co-captain Kate Heffernan will have to wait longer to get her ANZ Premiership season underway. The Silver Ferns midcourter was not able to take the court in the Steel's opening game against the Tactix on Sunday after injuring her knee during training on May 8th. The injury had now been fully assessed, which shows she has hyperextended her right knee, which typically take between two and four weeks to heal. Heffernan said she was fully focused on getting back amongst the action. "Unfortunately, injuries are one of the realities of elite sport but that doesn't make it any less heartbreaking not be able to get out there with my team," she said. "We have all worked incredibly hard during the preseason and deserve to reap the rewards of that now the competition has started. "Watching from the sidelines definitely fuels my determination. I will be following the expert advice of our medical team to the letter and doing everything in my power to play as soon as I get the green light, but I know I have to be patient." Liana Leota. Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2025 When the Steel lost to the Tactix 57-50 in Christchurch they had to call on their assistant coach - former Silver Fern Liana Leota, and they may do so again. The 40-year-old was named on the bench for the southerners and did not look out of place when she spent 10 minutes on court at wing attack for her old club in the third quarter. Last year Leota stepped down from her role as England Roses technical coach and her position as Leeds Rhinos director of netball to take up the role at the Steel. Her last season playing domestic netball was in 2022 in the England league. Heffernan travelled with the team in a leadership role for the opening game against the Tactix in Christchurch. "Naturally I want to be out there playing my part, but I have the upmost faith in our entire squad to get the job done regardless of who is wearing the bibs. We have prepared for every scenario," she said. The Steel also used Stars training partner Khanye-Lii Munro-Nonoa as cover in the defensive end for Dakota Thomas. The 24-year-old Thomas made the move to New Zealand after being a training partner at the NSW Swifts. But with the Stars suffering an injury crisis, Munro-Nonoa might be needed back in Auckland. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Otago Daily Times
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
'Positive progress' but Heffernan out for more games
Kate Heffernan will miss more games for the Southern Steel this year. Photo: Blake Armstrong/Michael Bradley Photography Southern Steel co-captain Kate Heffernan will miss the opening rounds of the ANZ Premiership after hyperextending her knee. Heffernan, who missed the opener against the Mainland Tactix on Sunday, hurt her knee at training last week but is expected to return this season. Steel physio Stacey Allan said there was a robust recovery plan and Heffernan was making ''positive progress'' as they worked towards her return. While disappointed, Heffernan said her focus was on getting back on court. ''Unfortunately, injuries are one of the realities of elite sport but that doesn't make it any less heartbreaking to not be able to get out there with my team,' Heffernan said. 'We have all worked incredibly hard during the preseason and deserve to reap the rewards of that now the competition has started. 'Watching from the sidelines definitely fuels my determination. I will be following the expert advice of our medical team to the letter and doing everything in my power to play as soon as I get the green light, but I know I have to be patient.' The Silver Fern travelled with the team in a leadership role to their opening game. 'Naturally I want to be out there playing my part, but I have the utmost faith in our entire squad to get the job done regardless of who is wearing the bibs.'' The Steel head to Hamilton to play the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic on Monday.
Otago Daily Times
11-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Injury woes for Heffernan before season opener
Southern Steel co-captain Kate Heffernan. File photo: Getty Images Southern Steel co-captain Kate Heffernan is unlikely to play their season opener against the Mainland Tactix tonight after injuring her knee at training. But former Steel player and now assistant coach Liana Leota is ready to suit up if needed and has been named as a replacement player for the ANZ Premiership game. Coach Wendy Frew confirmed Heffernan, 25, was doubtful as they waited for her injury to be properly assessed. Leota, 40, played for the Steel from 2008 to 2011, had a three year stint with the Central Pulse and played in the Super League in the United Kingdom, where she also coached. Former Northern Stars player Khanye'-Lii Munro-Nonoa has also joined the team as a replacement player. "Obviously no team wants to be in a position where you're having to look at alternative options, but the reality is we have a couple of injuries which need to be managed so the smart decision here is to ensure we have good backup on the bench if we need it,'' Frew said. 'While I'm not sure Liana expected to be packing her sneakers and playing kit, we are lucky to have someone of her netball pedigree available and willing to step up if we need her to.'' Heffernan is the second casualty for the Steel. Defender Dakota Thomas had already been ruled out after carrying a niggle. Southern Blast defender Holly McRae will replace her.
