LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 26: Kate Shimmin of England in action during the Vitality Netball Nations Cup 2020 match between Vitality Roses and South Africa SPAR Proteas at Copper Box Arena on January 26, 2020 in London, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images for England Netball)
Vitality Roses Chelsea Pitman and Kate Shimmin secured a historic victory (Adelaide Thunderbirds) while Helen Housby and Natalie Haythornthwaite (NSW Swifts) made it two from two in the 2020 Super Netball season.
GIANTS Netball 51-59 Adelaide Thunderbirds
Vitality Roses involved: Jo Harten (GIANTS Netball), Chelsea Pitman and Kate Shimmin (both Adelaide Thunderbirds)
Adelaide Thunderbirds beat GIANTS Netball for the first time in their history, winning by eight goals in Round 2.
Jo Harten (GA), Chelsea Pitman (WA) and Kate Shimmin (GD) all started for their respective sides.
Vitality Rose Shimmin put in a dynamic display, including a pair of flying intercepts and a blocked shot, and was named Nissan Player of the Match.
Shimmin and Shamera Sterling looked to have the edge over GIANTS’ shooting circle in the early stages but a Super Shot spree from Harten turned things in GIANTS’ favour at the end of the opening quarter.
But a resolute second-quarter defensive display from Shimmin and Sterling helped to turn the tide and drive Thunderbirds into the lead.
The defensive duo restricted GIANTS to just 11 shooting attempts during the quarter while Thunderbirds sank 17 of their 20 efforts to establish a 33-27 half-time lead.
Thunderbirds led by six goals heading into the final quarter and they successfully held their nerve to keep the opposition at bay and get their first points of the season on the board.
Score breakdown
Q1: GIANTS 19 v Thunderbirds 14
Q2: GIANTS 8 v Thunderbirds 19
Q3: GIANTS 12 v Thunderbirds 12
Q4: GIANTS 12 v Thunderbirds 14
Vitality Roses shooting stats
Jo Harten – G1 – 14/17 (82%); G2 – 6/13 (46%)
G1 = shots during normal play | G2 = Super Shots taken
Nissan Player of The Match: Kate Shimmin (Adelaide Thunderbirds)
NSW Swifts 73-72 West Coast Fever
Vitality Roses involved: Helen Housby, Natalie Haythornthwaite (both NSW Swifts), and Stacey Francis (West Coast Fever)
NSW Swifts came from 10 goals down to claim a thrilling 73-72 win over West Coast Fever.
The Premiers fought back from a huge deficit late in the second quarter to lead by a sizeable margin themselves, before only just getting the win in the closing seconds.
Housby (GA) and Haythornthwaite (WA) both started for Swifts, with Stacey Francis (GD) named in Fever’s starting seven.
The early impetus was with Fever but Swifts remained within striking distance and went into the break just two goals down (18-20).
Fever punished mistakes from the defending champions to put five goals between the sides and the Perth side then stretched their advantage to 10 after capitalising on confusion in Swifts’ attacking end.
Housby had the final say of the half though, landing a Super Shot to leave eight between the sides – 41-33.
There was much more rhythm to Swifts’ play in the third quarter, drawing level at 46-all before taking control and establishing a seven-goal lead heading into the final quarter.
When the last Power Five started, Jhaniele Fowler stepped up to bring her side right back into the game with Fever going from eight down to all square in the space of five minutes.
With just 30 seconds on the clock, Swifts had a centre pass to retake the lead, and played it out to run the clock down. Housby scored the winning goal with six seconds remaining, leaving Fever no time to respond.
Score breakdown
Q1: Swifts 18 v Fever 20
Q2: Swifts 15 v Fever 21
Q3: Swifts 27 v Fever 11
Q4: Swifts 13 v Fever 20
Vitality Roses shooting stats
Helen Housby – G1 – 13/14 (93%); G2 – 6/11 (55%)
G1 = shots during normal play | G2 = Super Shots taken
Sunshine Coast Lightning 51-47 Collingwood Magpies
Vitality Rose involved: Geva Mentor (Collingwood Magpies)
Geva Mentor’s Collingwood Magpies were beaten 51-47 by Sunshine Coast Lightning in Round 2 of the 2020 Super Netball season.
Vitality Rose Mentor played the full 60 minutes at the USC Stadium (University of Sunshine Coast).
Magpies took advantage of a late change to Lightning’s line-up to establish an early 1-6 advantage.
With Jamaican defender Jodi-Ann Ward impressing alongside Mentor, Magpies took a five-goal lead in the second quarter but their advantage was cut to just three at half-time.
Lightning, who introduced goal attack Steph Wood shortly before the break, made their move in the third quarter.
They outscored Collingwood 16-9 to break open a tight defensive contest and build a 37-33 lead.
A 6-2 start to the fourth quarter for Lightning put the game beyond Collingwood’s reach despite the impact of Magpie youngster Nyah Allen keeping fans on the edge of their seats.
Score breakdown
Q1: Lightning 10 v Magpies 11
Q2: Lightning 11 v Magpies 13
Q3: Lightning 16 v Magpies 9
Q4: Lightning 14 v Magpies 14
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