Nat Medhurst: The line-up switch that can save stunned Vixens’ season in SSN preliminary final
Melbourne Vixens’ rare finals thrashing leaves them scrambling for Super Netball survival heading into their prelim. Two stars must lift and one needs a position change to beat West Coast Fever, writes NAT MEDHURST.
Two very different teams, coming off two very different Super Netball semi-finals.
Melbourne Vixens turned in a rather dismal performance against Adelaide Thunderbirds in the major semi-final. Semis rarely produce such one-sided affairs that leave a team scrambling to turn around their form in just a week.
A team and club like the Vixens are capable of doing just that in Saturday’s preliminary final.
But it won’t be easy.
West Coast Fever will be filled with confidence after their do-or-die semi win over the Lightning, as well as a thrilling one-goal victory against the Vixens in Round 13. They will no doubt be sniffing blood; they have an enormous chance to kill off a wounded Melbourne side and reach the grand final.
Yet the Vixens still have the side to win – if tweaks are made.
SHOOTER STRUGGLES
A big issue is the Vixens’ goal shooting circle. It’s quite strange looking back at last weekend’s semis, in which the four Diamonds shooters from a winning 2023 World Cup campaign (Sophie Garbin, Kiera Austin, Cara Koenen and Steph Fretwell) all struggled to fire.
Garbin’s form and Vixens combination with Austin hasn’t been what we know it can be, or what they showed in their Round 7 win against the Fever. They had just 31 regular shot attempts between them against the T-Birds, and look like they are working less as a unit and more in isolation. When they are on, the use of screens, movement, circle balance and confidence to the post are all evident, and they’ll need that this weekend.
The Fever will aim to replicate the shot disruption they produced against the Lightning, especially through Kadie-Ann Dehaney. Her work rate to get up over the shot, even when the opposition tried to cause a mismatch, was impressive. The Vixens shooters cannot afford to be spectators at any point and must use their smarts on screening Dehaney’s ability to get over the shot.
ATTACKERS’ DEFENCE
Defence all across the court matters and if there’s a time for the Vixens attackers to shine in this space, it’s this weekend. The Fever’s long-court transition off a baseline throw-in can be patchy. Pressure to hold up and force long balls, with the Vixens defenders sitting high to come through for a fly intercept, can win them some much-needed ball.
Disrupting the speed that can be generated through this Fever midcourt is essential if the Vixens are expecting Rudi Ellis to get her hands on any ball headed towards Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard. The champion Fever goal shooter went 67/67 against the Lightning, underlining that if the work isn’t done on defence before the ball reaches her hands, it’s too late.
STICK LIKE GLUE
The tactics of both the Lightning and the Vixens in their week-one semis were to let the opposition GA roam, which did not work. The Vixens must apply pressure to the Fever’s Shanice Beckford. At the start of the season, oppositions fell into the trap of giving her plenty of space and she loves that. Not having a player to work around gives her freedom to move around the court, generate her speed and conserve energy. And she’s more confident to the post, so the Vixens need to get up in her face. Make her work. Shut her down as an “easy option”.
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The best person to do that is Jo Weston. I understand the Vixens wanting to go for height across that defence line (Ellis, Emily Mannix and Weston), but they lose elements of their game as a result. Their transition out of defence isn’t as clean and they lack understanding of where to run. That was evident even in the opening minutes against Adelaide. Either they have worked tremendously on the existing plan during the week, or the Vixens need to go back to Weston at goal defence with Kate Eddy at wing defence, and settle in for a big task ahead.
They should be excited by that opportunity. These games, the big moments, are what players should live for. To prove a point – whether to other people or to themselves.
It’s not easy. Senior players in particular need to deliver, for both the Vixens and the Fever, if they want that grand final spot.
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