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RNZ News
11 hours ago
- Sport
- RNZ News
Netball: Mystics hold off late Magic charge in error ridden game
Catherine Hall (left) of the Mystics and Saviour Tui of the Magic. Photo: Aaron Gillions / The Mystics have beaten the Magic 40-38 in a defence heavy game in Auckland to inch towards the top of the ANZ Premiership ladder. The Tactix sit just above them, courtesy of a bonus point. A Magic win would have seen them leapfrog the Pulse to third on the table, instead they sit just one point adrift in fourth, thanks to picking up a bonus point for finishing within five of the Mystics. Despite the Magic finishing with a whooping 35 turnovers they managed to stick close enough with the Mystics. Shooter Saviour Tui nailed three super-shots in the final five minutes and suddenly the Magic threatened to pull off an unlikely comeback. But a turnover gifted the ball back to the Mystics and they steadied the ship. In the first meeting between the two sides this season, there were no surprises in the starting line-ups of either team. On the back of brilliant performances against the Pulse the round before Michaela Sokolich-Beatson started at goal defence and 20-year-old Sophia Lafaiali'i at goal shoot. The Mystics came out firing and forced the Magic to call a time-out when they were trailing 6-nil. The Magic finally got on the board and clawed their way back but the Mystics led 12-8 after the first quarter. The Magic were scrappy but somehow got within two of the Mystics before Filda Vui sunk a two-pointer on the half-time buzzer and the home side led 21-17. Defence from both sides was tight and reflected in a very low scoring game. Mystics goal keep Catherine Hall was brilliant in picking up lots of ball and Sokolich-Beatson kept Magic captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio quiet. The Mystics led 32-25 going into the final spell. Lafaiali'i put up 26 goals in the 54 minutes she was on court. Tui put up 23 goals but needed better ball delivery from her team-mates.
RNZ News
09-06-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Blowouts, unpredictable results define first half of ANZ Premiership
Mila Reuelu-Buchanan takes the ball in the Stars v Magic match Photo: Photosport / Andrew Cornaga Analysis - The Magic inflicted more pain on the Stars with a 71-54 win in Auckland on Monday night. Last week the Magic beat the Stars by 21 goals but the Stars weren't able to exact any kind of revenge when they met for the second time in a week. The Magic sit fourth on the ANZ Premiership ladder, while the Stars are at the bottom after just one win in five games. For the first time this season Maia Wilson started the game at goal shoot for the Stars, with Australian import shooter Charlie Bell on the bench after a couple of quiet games. Last week Stars defender Kate Burley was ruled out of the season altogether after reaggravating a foot injury at training. The Stars have been missing the tenacious defender and it's another blow after losing midcourter Greer Sinclair in the first round to a season ending knee injury. The Magic continued where they left off last week to lead the Stars 20-11 after the first quarter. The Stars desperately needed to contain the Magic attacking end and coach Temepara Bailey responded by bringing Kayla Johnson on at goal defence, and moving Lili Tokaduadua to goal keep. On return from injury, Samon Nathan made her first appearance of the season when she played 18 minutes at wing defence. Despite a better second quarter and Monica Falkner nailing three super shots, the Magic led 38-29 at half-time. Bell came on at goal shoot with six minutes left in the third quarter but the Stars just couldn't make any headway and the Magic led 56-39 at the final turn. Magic coach Mary-Jane Araroa made her first substitution in two games by bringing on Oceane Maihi at goal defence with 10 minutes left. Saviour Tui earned back-to-back MVP awards after shooting 46 goals at 94 percent. Magic captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio was also a big contributor, shooting 25 goals in support. The Mystics celebrate. Photo: Marty Melville / Photosport Score blowouts and unpredictable results have characterised the first half of netball's ANZ Premiership. In round two, no one would have predicted the Steel would thrash the Magic by 28 goals. In round four the Magic beat the Stars by 21 goals to register their first of the season. Against all predictions the injury depleted Mystics beat the Pulse on the weekend, who were coming off a 25 goal thrashing of the Steel, and the week before that a 24 goal win over the Stars. Former Silver Ferns coach Yvonne Willering said the topsy turvy results were concerning. "Because it just shows inconsistency and at the moment it's actually really hard to predict, it's not clear cut in predicting winners each week," Willering said. "You look at it and go 'well this team should win' but who knows what's going to happen, you cannot take past results into account when you're trying to predict winners. "In a way I guess that's a good thing but personally as a coach and seeing this and looking to our future because this is our elite competition you would want to see far more consistency in the performances of not just teams but also individual players." The intention of the two-point shot is that it gives teams an opportunity to catch up on the score board, but it can do the opposite. When a margin gets big enough, the trailing team naturally feels that their only option to winning is through nailing super shots. The Stars were in that position last night but Bell was only able to land one from eight attempts from that range, with the rebound often ending up in the hands of the opposition. At the half-way point of the season the Tactix are top of the table, ahead of the Mystics in second place, and the Pulse third. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
