Netball: Diamonds sparkle to extinguish Flames

By Sarah Nealon and Suzanne McFadden

Shooters Leonie Leaver and Kylie Hall came back from serious injuries to give the Auckland Diamonds a gutsy win in the opening match of the national netball league last night.

The Aucklanders turned around a patchy start to beat the Canterbury Flames 48-44 in front of a small but vocal crowd at the ASB Stadium.

Last year's top two teams in the Coca-Cola Cup, the Otago Rebels and the Southern Sting, had to battle to pick up first-round points in their games last night.

The Rebels held off a feisty Cometz team at Papatoetoe, 46-42, while the Sting, without key shooter Donna Loffhagen, came from behind to beat Northern Force 40-38 before a sellout crowd in Invercargill.

Shonky footwork and uneven play from the Diamonds in the first quarter made the game very stop-start, allowing the Southerners to gain a four-goal advantage after 10 minutes.

Leaver, who snapped her Achilles tendon last season, and Hall, who had a knee reconstruction, had to work hard for every point in the face of tight defence from Canterbury's Belinda Charteris and Anna Veronese.

At the other end of the court, play was less scrappy, with Australian import Lisa Gregory, at goal-attack, and goal-shoot Sonia Butler finding the space easier.

By halftime, however, the Diamonds had begun to sparkle and were six up on the visitors.

A more even, consistent effort saw the Diamonds dominate the game in the last half. Despite a six-year absence, former Silver Fern Louisa Wall showed why she is still a force in defence.

"It was a great debut for Louisa," said Diamonds coach Tania Karauria. "The key to tonight was our defence as a unit."

The Cometz kept in step with the more experienced Rebels side, and only fell away in the last 10 minutes.

Both sides were equal, 33-33, going into the final spell, after the Cometz introduced shooter Janine Topia after halftime. But the professional attitudes of Otago shooter Jo Steed and goal-keep Katie Fay made the difference.

English import Naomi Siddell scored the winning intercept in the final minutes to give the Sting a two-goal win over the nuggety Force side.

In Wellington, the home side pulled away in the last quarter to overwhelm the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic, 66-51.