Tactics finals key

The tactical approach of the two teams will be entirely different when St Matthew's Collegiate and Wairarapa College meet in the grand final of Netball Wairarapa's premier one competition at the Genesis Recreation Centre in Masterton. on Saturday night.
In what is thought to be the first time that two college sides have made it through to the decider an enthralling contest is in prospect with neither side deserving to start favourites.
Two meetings thus far this season have resulted in a win apiece and there was only one placing between them when they both contested the Lower North Island secondary schoolgirls tournament in New Plymouth earlier in the month.
St Matthews are shooting for back-to-back premier one titles and coach Marion Tulloch has been pleased with the steady progress they have made throughout the 2005 season.
A couple of losses early on at club level did raise speculation they may not be the force they were last season but Tulloch said the aim had always been to first of all make the top four playoffs and then qualify for the final.
"We knew all along what we had to do to make the top four and that was where our focus was," she said. "Losing those early games didn't worry us too much ? we had plenty of time to make up the lost ground."
Making the final didn't come easily for St Matthews though.They were involved in a nail-biting major semi-final match with Harcourts Collegiate last Friday winning a match which was always neck-and-neck by just the one goal.
"It could have gone either way?.it was just so exciting," Tulloch said."It was a real test of character for the players and they coped really well."
The St Matthews coach expects Saturday night's final to be another cliffhanger and she believes her team's chances could depend on how they react to Wairarapa College's high-risk style of play.
"Defence will be vital for us," she said. " They (Wairarapa College) are extremely hard to stop if they get on a roll and we've got to ensure that doesn't happen."
Tulloch said St Matthews' own tactics will revolve around maintaining a structure and doing the basics well.
"We are not as flashy as Wairarapa College but hopefully we can keep our mistakes to a minimum and force them into errors," she said. "We can't afford to get rattled ,, that's the big thing for us."
Wairarapa College coach Mary-Anne Stuart readily concedes her side's style of play, which relies a lot on natural flair and speed, can work against them if they are not on their game but she doesn't intend to have them doing anything different come Saturday night.
"It is risky, we accept that, but the girls enjoy what they are doing and we won't be asking them to change things now," Stuart said. "We like to move the ball around at pace and we'll be sticking to that."
Stuart is hopeful too that the versatility of her squad will count in their favour with most of the players being able to perform well in more than one position.
"It means we can make subtle changes to tactics simply by putting players in different positions," she said. "Again there is a risk in that it can sometimes take a while for the new combinations to work but it can be a risk worth taking."
Stuart makes no secret of her respect for St Matthews, labelling them as a side which had good skills right throughout the court. "They are very steady, they probably don't have the flair we have but they do the basics well. And that makes them very hard to beat."
The likely make-up of the two squads for Saturday night is:-
ST MATTHEWS COLLEGIATE: Ashleigh Somerville, Sophie Ross, Ngahuia Wilson-Kapene, Kate Cameron-Donald, Pip Lynch, Harriet Somerville, Ashley McDougall, Ella Biggs, Milly Bell, Shelley Martin.
WAIRARAPA COLLEGE: Hope Phillips, Emma McGovern, Abby Hull, Jess Burkhart, Erin Morriss, Logan Karaitiana, Janelle Butler, Caitlin Berry, Kate Hurrell, Valerie Ryland, Rosie Mahoney, Sarah McKenzie.
Interestingly enough both players have five players apiece in the Wairarapa under-17 netball side which hit the high spots by finishing fourth out of 35 teams in their national tournament in Wanganui earlier in the season.
From St Matthews were Harriet Somerville, Bell, Biggs, Ross and Lynch and from Wairarapa College McKenzie, Hull, Phillips, Morriss and Karaitiana.