On the back of a strong second quarter, Mainland have netted their first win of the Synergy Hair Netball League to take down the high-flying Waikato-BOP.
Heading into the Round 5 match without a win, Mainland’s dogged defence and the composure of young shooter Te Ata Hassan guided the hosts to a much-needed 51-44 win over Waikato-BOP at Christchurch Arena on Sunday.
Coach Tania Hoffman was delighted to see it “all come together” for maximum SHNL points in what she described as a full team effort.
“This performance has been coming,” she said.
“We’ve had leads before in games but just haven’t been able to push through. It was great to see the girls hold their composure even when they put the pressure back on us.
“Hopefully we can now push on for the next one because we meet them again in less than seven days so it’s a quick turnaround and they’ll be hungry for the win.”
Hoffman said they had been working hard with Mainland’s young shooting circle and she was impressed to see it pay off on court.
“They’re a very young unit in the shooting circle and they’ve been working really hard, so it was great to see that translate into the game and against some tough defence.”
Both teams made a strong start to the match, getting quality ball to their shooters and working hard on defence.
Mainland defenders Caitlin O’Sullivan and Kate Littlejohn got their hand to plenty of ball as they attempted to shut down the towering presence of Waikato-BOP shooter Kate Taylor – picking up 10 gains between them throughout the game.
They led 11-10 at the break, making just the one change to the starting seven with Trident Homes Tactix goal attack Vika Koloto coming on for the second spell as Mainland kept the pressure on.
The work of 18-year-old shooter Te Ata Hassan along the baseline kept the Waikato-BOP defenders guessing as the hosts opened a nine-goal lead late in the second spell.
Six gains in the second 15 minutes of play, to Waikato-BOP’s one, paved the way to Mainland’s 25-17 halftime lead with Ashleigh Poi injected into the game late in the half.
Waikato-BOP made a number of personnel changes after the break with Kaiya Kepa brought into the centre role and Reeghan de Bono moving into goal defence and Liza Ball onto the wing.
The visitors netted the first two goals of the third spell but errors with their final pass into the shooting circle continued to dog their attacking efforts.
Defender Monica Faumui did her best to spark Waikato-BOP into action with two gains for her team, but unlike previous weeks Mainland would not lie down, holding their composure under pressure.
Hoffman switched up her defensive unit with Paris Lokotui joining O’Sullivan in the circle and Julia Wynands coming on to the wing.
Mainland led 38-32 heading into the final spell and shared the workload in stealing ball from Waikato-BOP, midcourter Lily Fletcher leading the way through the middle with four gains from the match.
Meanwhile, in other SHNL matches the Robinhood Comets held off a fast-finishing Southern Blast for a 52-46 win at the Edgar Centre in Dunedin on Saturday.