The Melbourne Vixens fired off another dominant performance in the Suncorp Super Netball series, defeating the Queensland Firebirds 66-55 to secure their place in the inaugural Super Netball Finals series.
The Vixens dominated the match from the first centre pass, with the team managing to move the ball freely through the midcourt down to pin-point accurate shooters Mwai Kumwenda and Tegan Philip.
With the Vixen’s holding a narrow 4-point lead heading into the first break, the Queensland side took the opportunity to make tactical team changes, but they failed to shake the Vixen’s momentum.
The defensive trio of Emily Mannix, Chloe Watson and Jo Weston formed a formidable Vixen’s defensive unit, with Weston producing an MVP worthy performance with five intercepts, five deflections and six gains throughout the match.
Frustrations ran high in the Firebird’s camp heading into the main break as they continued to trail the home side, with Firebirds attacker Gretta Tippett shoving Mannix to the ground in a heated moment.
The Vixens never dropped their lead throughout the match, at one stage gaining up to 14 points on the Firebirds before a final offensive push from the visitors saw the margin narrow to 11 points.
Mwai Kumwenda consolidated her reputation as one of the best shooters in the competition as the highest scorer of the match, making 43 of 47 shots at goal in her 50th National league game.
Coach Simone McKinnis said that the team had to work hard throughout the match to take the win.
“That was hard work tonight, it really was, as it always is against the Firebirds,” McKinnis said.
Although she said there was still work to be done, McKinnis said she was overall happy with their performance.
“The girls did a really good job at maintaining intensity throughout the game.” she said.
Their win has cemented the Vixens a place in the inaugural Suncorp Super Netball Finals series, as they head to Canberra next weekend to take on the GIANTS Netball outfit.
