The Melbourne Vixens narrowly lost to GIANTS Netball over the weekend 56-52 in Canberra.
The GIANTS have been hot on the Vixens’ heels in the last few weeks, making for a real contest for the minor premiership.
The home side clearly did their homework with the GIANTS aptly shutting down the Vixens midcourt and attacking sides. Vixens Kate Moloney and Liz Watson struggled to push the ball down court thanks to a strong GIANTS midcourt, whilst Vixens goal attack, Tegan Philip, was unable to make her usual impact, with GIANTS match MVP, Rebecca Bulley, proving most effective in defence.
The GIANTS held onto a close 3-point margin at half-time, which saw Vixens making tactical changes in the third quarter in an attemptto shift the momentum of the match.
Khao Watts returned to the court for the first time following knee surgery earlier in the season, while Emma Ryde made her Vixens debut for the 2017 season. Unfortunately, the changes failed to shake the home team, with the GIANTS maintaining a 7-point leading heading into the final term.
The Vixens give it everything in the final quarter to close the Canberra side’s lead, however, the GIANTS held on to take the win 56-52, handing the Vixens their second loss of the Suncorp Super Netball season.
With two matches left in the regular season, the Vixens will be looking for another win next week when they take on the Adelaide Thunderbirds at Margaret Court Arena on Sunday afternoon.
