St Nicholas, Sacred Heart still lead

Press, 27 May 1985, Page 24

St Nicholas, Sacred Heart still lead

Sacred Heart A and St Nicholas A continued to head the top of the points table after comfortable wins in the fourth round of the Trusteebank senior netball competition at the South Hagley Courts on Saturday. In other games wins were not so easily obtained. Hagley had to fight off a very determined Burnside before eventually winning while Riccarton had no easy task in beating an equally determined Teachers' College side. Technical played its best game of the season to overcome St Nicholas B. Points: Sacred Heart A 8, St Nicholas A 8, Hagley 6, South Brighton 4, Technical 4, Riccarton 4, Burnside 2, Teachers’ College 2, St Nicholas B 2, Sacred Heart B 0. Sacred Heart A 57, Sacred Heart B 11 With the New Zealand Young Internationals teammates, Diana Sullivan and Stephanie Stokes, back in the line-up after their trip to the Pacific Islands, Sacred Heart turned on a convincing performance. The Sacred Heart A players, looking colourful in their red-and-white striped shirts worn for this match, clearly dominated the game, never relaxing for a minute. At half-time they had raced to an impressive 315 lead. With Stokes and Sullivan netting perfectly, Sacred Heart A was really at its best, the speed in passing often leaving Sacred Heart B stranded. Try as it might, Sacred Heart B could not match the opposition in strength or speed, although it put up an admirable display, using all its resources in an attempt to raise the goal tally. Sacred Heart B’s shoots, Sharon Young and Louise Hanhan, were not given as many opportunities to net the ball, and when they did, mised many by being over-anxious. In the second half, Sacred Heart A netted goals in rapid succession, taking the final score to 57-11. Umpires: R. Thomasen and A. Elder. Hagley 34, Burnside 17 Burnside looked like a new team when the first whistle blew, starting off convincingly, showing Hagley that it would not go down without a fight. The Burnside players were eager to get to the ball and determined to dominate, quickly notching up a 6-4 lead. Burnside’s shoots, Leith McPherson and Maxine Butler, were shooting better than in previous matches, and the more goals they netted, the

more confident they became. After such a jolt, Hagley soon began to step-up its accuracy, with the strength and height of Jan Pickering in the circle and Linda Parnham in mid-court helping to carry Haglev into the lead at halftime By 19-11. Hagley had the edge at the beginning of the second half, throwing long balls straight down to its circle, eliminating unnecessary passes. Burnside was defending particularly well at this stage, and had changed positions at halftime, putting the centre, Suzanne Camp, at wing-attack, her sister, Natalie, at wingdefence, and moving Diane Browne to centre. This switch-around proved beneficial and had the effect of confusing Hagley for a short time at the beginning of the second half. However, Hagley still managed to maintain its lead, throwing tight passes and using the court length well and made more use of its possession than did Burnside. It was a very hard-fought match, doser than the final score indicated. Umpires: F. Beckham and J. Woodham. St Nicholas A 45, South Brighton 14 The young South Brighton side, which had done so well in the previous three rounds, really met its match on Saturday with St Nicholas A proving too strong and steady. Both sides had replacements at centre with Ginny Le Bas fronting up for St Nicholas A and Deane Stringer playing for South Brighton. They replaced the injured Lyn McLennan and Therese Dickey respectively. St Nicholas A began well, with Ann Davidson and April Irnemia shooting fautlessly as always, showing great concentration and skill. St Nicholas passed convincingly and attacked forcefully and led, 27-7, at half-time. With its goal-defence, Annette Heffernan, back in the line-up after being in the Pacific Islands, shooting was made more difficult for South Brighton’s Mary Setu and Maria Tipa, although they netted well in the first half. In spite of a gallant effort by the wing-attack, Rachel Bradley, and the wing-defence, Verna Kelly, South Brighton could not overcome St Nicholas’s strong defence. St Nicholas’ experienced play was too much of an obstacle for its young opponents in the end, who, considering their strong opposition, put up a commendable perform-

ance. Umpires: S. Morton and A. Orangi. Technical 39. St Nicholas 827 - Considering Technical's new ' line-up and its lack of expertence playing together, the team seems to improve each P week in great leaps and -i bounds. f,' Playing its best yet Techni- ■ cal attacked, defended and netted accurately. Jackie Api- ’ ata, at wing-attack, Denise ■ Hampton, at centre, and Fiona Turner, at goal-attack, all made the most of their possession, passing the ball with -. determination and precision. Their solid play upset St Nicholas B's rhythm and never really gave that team an opportunity to fight its way back into the match. At half-time Technical led, 20-13. After the break, St Nicholas B improved its attack with Karen Glue and Barbera Shaw stepping up their speed to the loose ball, passing more convincingly and omitting loose technical countered this by .- defending well, and proved its fitness, using the court space effectively. It was a close match but Technical thoroughly deserved its win and should be pleased with its performance. Umpires: J. Woodham and J. jHefford. Riccarton 30, Teachers’ College 26 Teachers’ looked set to dominate at the beginning of the match, with Melanie Leef and Chris Bremner passing skilfully. At half-time it led, 16-14. After the break, however, Riccarton came back on to the court with new enthusiasm and soon overtook Teachers' College. " Riccarton made good use of its goal-shoot, Diane Nellis, ■ who was back on the team j; after being injured in the first round. She shot admirably, especially in the second *• half. Riccarton improved with each goal, but Teachers' College never let it run away with a comfortable lead. The agility of Helen Meates and Margaret Bray combined with the excellent defence of Kate Kernahan and Tania Ronald, and prevented Teachers’ from taking the initiative and the lead. The fitness and stamina of the Riccarton side did much to facilitate its victory, and in spite of Teachers’ constant efforts, Riccarton played the more controlled netball. Umpires: J. Hefford and E. Rouse.