Game Detail // ANZ Championship 2008

Round Name:  Round 3     Starting Date:  19/4/2008

Team			v	Team		Location	Date/Time
	» Swifts	50	v.	» Magic	47	TBA	19/04/2008  2:30 PM
	SKY Sport Time:	16:30
	ONE Time:	14:30
	Umpire 1:	Sharon Kelly
	Umpire 2:	Helen George
	Reserve Umpire:	Collette Brennan

Leading from start to finish helped return the NSW Swifts to the winner’s circle today when they beat the Colourplus Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic 50-47 in third-round ANZ Championship action in Newcastle.

A faltering effort ended the Magic’s winning streak as a top shooting effort from captain Catherine Cox guided the Swifts home in a tense battle.

After two wins at home, the Magic were brought back to earth across the Tasman with an indecisive game. The Swifts played at masterful hand at nullifying the Magic’s strengths and were more accurate in their finishing.

Magic struggled throughout on attack, their normal flow missing as they failed to counter the Swifts defensive stranglehold.They were unable to break the constant pressure where the Swifts showed precision on attack and were able to find their shooters with more regularity.

In a stellar game, Cox made a telling contribution as they profited through her accuracy under the hoop with the home team enjoying 60 shots at goal compared to Magic’s 55. At the other end of the court, and making her debut in the competition, goalkeeper Adelaide Johnson put in an eye-catching performance to keep Magic’s shooting prowess in check.

The first half went in fits and starts for both teams, each enjoying little passages where they held sway without dominating. Unable to get their normal flow, the Magic were kept under wraps by the strong defensive patterns of the Swifts. Midcourters Selina Gilsenan and Kimberley Green were instrumental in keeping the Magic feeders on the back foot on attack and away from the circle edge. This hindered the effectiveness of shooters Maria Tutaia and Irene van Dyk, who were slow off the mark and off target early on.

A high error rate combined with a low conversion rate from both teams in the first quarter where the Swifts edged to a 10-9 first quarter advantage.The change of Laura Langman from wing defence to centre injected some life into the Magic’s attacking thrust but the visitors continued to falter through lack of timing, accuracy and some strong defensive pressure from the Swifts. Successfully closing down Magic’s preferred option of playing the game at pace, Cox propelled the Swifts into a 24-22 halftime lead.

Tutaia found her range to tie the scores early in the third quarter but Magic were unable to take the next step as Cox continued to shine under the Swifts goal as her team went into the final break 37-36 ahead.

Home Team Game sheet: Swifts

Away Team Game sheet: Magic

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