Netball: Force feel strength of Southland

By JULIE ASH

Force defender Linda Vagana struggled to hold back the tears last night after her team's two-goal loss to the Southern Sting in the final of the national league.

Competing in their first final, the Force pushed the defending champions right to the final whistle. But in the end it was the Sting's patience and discipline that won the match, 51-49.

"I wish the match had finished at the end of the first quarter, when we were ahead 14-9," Vagana said.

"But we were up against not only the Southern Sting, but all of Southland."

After a promising start from the North Harbour side, the wheels fell off in the second quarter, which led to a Sting revival.

"We had talked about starting strongly, and we always knew we were going to try to get off to a good start," Vagana said. "We just forgot to keep it up."

Throughout the entire match, the Force defence of Vagana and Kate Dowling won their side plenty of ball, but unfortunately it was not converted into points.

"We knew we needed to play well on defence because their attack is so strong," she said.

"I think as a team we played pretty well, apart from the shooters. We just needed to hold on."

Both sides are loaded with present and former Silver Ferns, so the match was always going to come down to a battle between the shooters.

Last night the Sting won hands down. Goal shoot Tania Dalton netted 31 from 36 attempts, and Donna Loffhagen 20 from 24 attempts.

In comparison, Force shooter Daneka Wipiiti netted only 37 shots from 52 attempts and Teresa Tairi 12 from 17.

The Force had 69 attempts at goal compared with the Sting's 60.

Sting coach Robyn Broughton admitted that she was "exhausted" after the match.

"It was such a wonderful game. It was really hard, really physical and really difficult."

She said her team's fifth victory was as sweet as their first.

"They are all exciting, but they are all different. This one was jolly hard. It was just that we managed to hang on," Broughton said.

"It was a great start from the Force, but it was a bad start from us because we weren't playing our own game. I felt we did it to ourselves rather than them doing it to us."

Whatever Broughton said to her team at the first quarter break certainly worked, as they clawed their way back and into the lead.

With the score tied at 35-all going into the last quarter, it was Sting's patience, ability to hold on to the ball and net goals that won them the match.

"It does make a big difference when you have shooters who can get the ball through the hoop," Broughton said.

"In saying that, the Force were good . . . but we were a bit better."

The Force, the first North Island team to make the final in the competition's six-year history, return home today. The Invercargill-based Sting side will celebrate with a tickertape parade in the city on Monday.

* Auckland Diamonds' Joan Hodson is in no doubt that Broughton is the best netball coach in the country and should take over from Ruth Aitken if the Silver Ferns fail to win July's world championship.

"She's got nothing else to prove to anybody," Hodson said.

"It's just so obvious that she should be in a position where either she applies for the Silver Ferns job, or where Netball New Zealand should approach her.

"I think she's got the front running to be coach if New Zealand does not win the world championship."