MATCH:                       Aztec 2               v                     Manurewa Rugby

DATE:                          Wednesday 11/4/12                   RESULT:    35 - 36 Manurewa Rugby

TEAM:
Alison White, Ariana Page, Chelsea Bilton, Josephine Otene, Luana Beazley-Tango, Ngamira Warren, Nicola O’Malley, Sara Lendrum, Sarah Inkster, Shaiann Hemi, Terri Anne Paea, Tracey Spence

COACH:                      Wendy Bremner                         MANAGER:                   Lucy Bremner

STARTING LINE UP:
Otene GS, Page GA, Hemi WA, White C, Paea WD, Bilton GD, Spence GK.

BENCH:  
O’Malley, Beazley-Tango, Lendrum                                ABSENT:      Inkster, Warren

Last grading game and we were up against the team at the top of the table.
Weather was wet, windy and cold and we started slow allowing Rewa to score 6 from the first 8 centre passes.  It’s never fun to trail from the start and our defensive end was receiving alot of whistle giving free shots to the opposition.  Accuracy was down at our shooting end as both Otene and Page struggled to find the hoop under strong pressure from the Rewa defence and the heavy rain.  The first quarter ended with Rewa in a dominating position 6 goals in front.  First quarter Score 5 - 11 Manurewa Rugby

OMalley came on at GA and Beazley-Tango at GK.  Handling errors at the attacking end squandered possession that had been turned over by our defenders and Rewa took advantage by increasing their lead by another 6 points to 12.  Half time score 10-22 to Manurewa Rugby.

Bilton was moved to the shooting end and Spence brought back on at GD, Page came on at WA and Lendrum at WD.  The rain got heavier and Aztec got more determined.  Bilton was outstanding in the shooting circle scoring 6 in a row after the 1st 2 centre passes.  Aztec could see an unexpected chance and consolidated their efforts with very few unforced errors and effective shooting.  The 3rd quarter was a reversal of the previous 2 with Aztec winning by 6 reducing the gap by the same amount.  23-29 to Manurewa Rugby.

No changes going into the final quarter, including no change to the heavy rain.  Bilton continued to dominate in the shooting end.  Spence and Beazley-Tango worked extremely hard in the defensive circle and Lendrum was effective putting more pressure on the feeds.  White and Page were fast to the circle edge and their feeding was strong and accurate throughout.  Otene and Bilton communicated with each other effectively creating space and opportunities to shoot.  It was a nail-biting final minute as Aztec closed the gap to 1 and had the ball in their shooting circle with seconds to go.  The game ended with a 1 goal advantage to Manurewa Rugby.  Third quarter Score:  35 - 36 Manurewa Rugby

Great to see the girls lift their game and contest till the end it was only seconds of netball that made the difference between a loss and a draw.  We look forward to the Presidents round commencing in a few weeks.