NSW Swifts have produced another stunning fourth-quarter comeback to defeat fierce rivals Melbourne Vixens 67-66 in Super Netball, triumphing by one goal for a second consecutive match.
Six days after Helen Housby’s clutch two-pointer sealed a 64-63 road victory over Sunshine Coast Lightning, the Swifts recovered from nine goals down at Sydney’s Ken Rosewall Arena on Saturday night, shocking the Victorian outfit and taking a major step toward regaining the Sargeant-McKinnis Cup.
Having won both meetings against the Swifts last season, the Vixens were on the verge of making it three straight but wilted in the final quarter as the home side amped up the pressure and forced four crucial turnovers to swing the match in their favour.
“I was looking into their eyes going, ‘We’ve got to pull something out here’, because it was almost like we were looking at the outcome rather than going we’ve got 15 more minutes to play here,” Swifts coach Briony Akle said.
“It was just coming back to just playing, grabbing little individual moments with each of them to say, ‘Get back in the game, we can grind this out’.”
The Swifts held a one-goal lead in the final minute when fill-in defender and former Vixen Allie Smith became the unlikely hero by ripping down a vital rebound after Mwai Kumwenda’s two-point attempt missed the mark to allow her side to cling to possession over the closing seconds.
“I don’t think we got one (defensive) rebound besides that rebound at the end,” said Akle, after midcourter Smith was forced to play in the circle when regular defender Maddy Turner left the court following a knock to the head.
“[Smith] is tough … I think Sarah [Klau] and Maddy were very grateful for her last rebound there.”
Melbourne coach Simone McKinnis handed unheralded defender Liv Lewis a starting role ahead of Emily Mannix to help combat the aerial strength of Romelda Aiken-George and the 23-year-old delivered with four gains and two intercepts in the first half.
Both teams enjoyed patches of dominance in the opening half but went into the main break with scores locked at 30-30 before the Vixens pounced in the third quarter to surge ahead 46-37.
But after sitting out a large portion of the third quarter, Housby returned for the power five period and drained three Super shots to cut Melbourne’s lead to 52-46 heading into the final quarter.
Needing to win extra possessions, the home side went chasing turnover ball in the fourth and the Vixens crumbled under intense scrutiny to drop their third game of the season and concede third place on the ladder to the Swifts.
AAP
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