Errors and fatigue costly to Wairarapa

Netball

Wairarapa were beaten 53-41 by Naenae in their regional super league netball semifinal last week.

As rank underdogs Wairarapa knew it would take a huge effort to run Naenae close and they certainly made a decent game of it, leading by two at the end of the first quarter and trailing by just the four goals, 25 to 21, at halftime.

The third quarter was also a competitive affair but the greater experience of Naenae kicked in over the final quarter and they drew away to win by a double-figure margin.

Wairarapa coach Dayle Clarkson said her team were simply guilty of too many errors over the closing stages as their energy levels dropped but she was pleased with the fight they displayed throughout most of the game.

Outstanding at goal shoot for Wairarapa was Perri Tatana-Williams who consistently put herself into favourable shooting and rebounding positions.

Reflecting on the overall performance in the super league series Clarkson was delighted with the improvement shown by her side, both in terms of confidence and skill.

"We were pretty green coming into this league but we developed well and played some good netball," she said.

Clarkson said it was likely Wairarapa would lose some of their current squad members next season, either because of university commitments or due to being drafted by teams from Wellington or the Hutt Valley because of the potential they showed this year.