36 SPORT
TUESDAY APRIL 21 2015
Bottom teams serve notice
Steve Menzies
NETBALL
Federal Trusty Glass goal attack Savannah Tiller creating an attacking move
Picture: CHARLIE LOWSON
THE chasm between the top A-grade teams and
the rest has been reduced to a crack if the Club
Eastside Alice Springs Netball Association
games on Saturday are any guide.
Undefeated top side Federal Trusty Glass defeated Wests’ Gillen Club 36-34 and then Seasons Lasseters came from behind to shoot 11 of
the final 13 goals to defeat Neata Glass Giants
48-41.
Federal went into the game against Wests’
without defender Tahlia Lee and coach Deb
Gray, but Wests’ were also not at full strength
with shooter Michelle Hall unavailable.
Wests’ began well, scoring the first three
goals, but Federal hit back with the next five to
establish a slender lead they surrendered only
once but could not build on.
Federal started with teenager Savannah Tiller at goal attack and captain Crystal Dixon back
in the centre court on the wing. Jenny Montgomery came into the side to play goal keeper,
allowing Katelyn Henwood to take Lee’s goal
defence position.
Both moves worked as Henwood and Tiller
were Federal’s best players. Tiller’s movement
in attack all game created space and opportunities to free up Dody Stephen deep in the circle.
Wests’ brought new recruit Jordan ManPreston straight into the side to partner Margaret Smith in the defence circle, moving Ebony
Miller into attack to replace Hall.
Converting shots was a problem with both
sides netting only mid-50s per cent, despite Stephens and Dani Wenske both nailing almost
two out of every three shots.
Wests’ coach Bill Adams almost pulled off a
masterstroke at the final change by moving
Kathlenn Carlile from the centre court to goal
shooter and she netted nine goals at 78 per cent
“Giants played really well. You
underestimate them at your
peril now. We were expecting
them to come out hard and
they did.”
to almost steal the game. But it was not to be as
every time Wests’ challenged Federal responded to hold them at bay.
Giants looked set to cause a major upset
when they led Seasons 39-37 and had possession
with nine minutes to play.
But the inexperience of being in a winning
position told and the team tried to force the
game instead of playing steady netball.
Seasons, on the other hand, kept working the
ball into attack where Aries Parai closed out the
game with seven goals without a miss to seal Giants’ fate.
Seasons captain Nikki Marsh said Giants
forced her side to really fight for the win.
“Giants played really well. You underestimate them at your peril now,” she said.
“We were expecting them to come out hard
and they did.
“With Bec (Ford) and Krydence (Schwalger)
out, we had a few new combinations. Sandy
(Warner) and Aries worked well in the attack
circle.
“I knew we could lift when Giants hit the
front in the final quarter, so I was not worried.
“We played the whole game and they didn’t.
They also threw the ball away a bit in the final
quarter which helped.”
Inconsistency hurt Giants. They scored 15
goals in the first term but seven in each of the
second and fourth quarters. Seasons scored 12,
12, 11 and 13 goals for each quarter.
There is no netball next Saturday due to
Anzac Day.
Warriors revive to bite Sharks
back in close quarters conflict
Hockey’s goal is to
build its strength
Nick Kossatch
HOCKEY
NEW faces are being sought
by the Alice Springs Hockey
Association for the 2015 season.
The association started its
new season earlier this month
and round three of the competition will start at Traeger
Ave, on the western (highway)
side of Traeger Park sporting
complex this weekend.
The club is looking for umpires, volunteers and of course
players.
Hockey in Central Australia
WARRIORS overcame a 3-1 half-time
deficit to overcome Desert Sharks in
round two of men’s hockey on Saturday.
Sharks were way on top in the first half
with the likes of Caleb MacDonald and
Ben and Tom Falzon on top before last
year’s runners-up upped their intensity.
Veteran Warriors’ player Squizzy Taylor scored two important goals.
“Our midfield stars were Brad White
and Greg Kean,” Taylor said.
It has been a big week for White who
“It was good to play and
my first time for the club.”
showed his ability with the stick after competing in the Stawell Gift where he finished seventh and backed it up in the firstever Desert Sports Foundation-metre run
on Friday night.
“It was good to play and my first time
for the club,” White added.
Matt Hughes and Peka Wilson also
scored crucial goals for Warriors while
Bruce Day got a double and Dan Mostran
added a goal for the Sharks.
Three goals to Stunts’ Doc Aamir propelled his team to a big 8-2 win against last
year’s premiers Centrals in the early men’s
match. Wayne Chalmers collected a pair
into the back of the net and teammates
Nick Kuhn, John Kenna and Dash Hewett
got their names in the scoresheet.
Desert Sharks posted a 5-4 win against
Gillen Divas in a shootout women’s
match. The Sharks’ defence stood up despite two goals from Divas’ Leeshay Maidment.
The other women’s game was a 2-2
draw between Centrals and Legends.
HOCKEY
is run by volunteers and the association is seeking adults to
help with their junior competitions, and anyone who’d like
to join a social committee to
help organise social events
throughout the year.
Qualified umpires are also
being sought after with teams
paying umpires. The association will also be running
courses in gaining an umpiring
accreditation.
If you’re interested you can
contact the association at
alicespringshockey@outlook.
com
Another game of thrones for rampaging Vikings
Nick Kossatch
RUGBY LEAGUE
VIKINGS have continued on from the their
CARFL grand final by taking out the preseason
nine-a-side competition played at Anzac Oval
on Saturday.
Two tries to prized NRL Warriors under-21
recruit Metia Lisati broke the shackles late in
the match after Wests held an 8-4 lead at halftime.
In a repeat of the decider in the season
proper last year, Vikings again took the honours to win 26-8 in the shortened version of
the game.
Luke Hereora put the icing on the Vikings
cake with a try in the dying seconds.
The team is destined for a CARFL dynasty
once the longer version of the game commences
on May 9.
Both teams entered the decider winning all of
their three earlier matches and the Dragons
began brightly with a try.
But some fancy footwork from Brigham
Parai helped set up Junior Saena who did the
rest for Vikings.
Younger brother of Wests player Nathan
Coelli, James, was crunched in a tackle during
his first game in a tough introduction
Solo Dawai combined with Jesse Hockney to
score a try that put Wests Dragons ahead just
before the break.
In a competition that featured nine-minute
halves with just two minutes between games,
Vikings began with a 43-0 blowout against
United Magpies, a 40-4 thumping over Memo
Bulls and prevented Police from scoring in a
31-0 win before the final.
The Dragons’ form was similar, having dismantled United in the first game 58-0, a 32-4
win against Police and a 48-4 smashing against
Bulls.
Grand final specialists Vikings won the nine-a-side preseason competition.
Picture: NICK KOSSATCH
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