Netball: Force on familiar path to defeat

By JULIE ASH

It has been their Archilles heel all season and last night the Force's inability to sink crucial shots cost them a place in the final of the National Bank Cup.

Beaten 52-45 by the Canterbury Flames, a disappointed Force side left the North Shore Events Centre ruing what could have been.

The Force had four more attempts at goal than their opposition, but the difference was the Flames landed 52 shots from 59 and the Force could manage only 45 from 63.

"I don't think we were able to put our game out there today," Force defence captain Linda Vagana said.

"We lost our momentum in the first quarter and then all our timing went."

For Margaret Foster's Flames it is now on to the final where they have the daunting task of trying to stop the Southern Sting from claiming their sixth consecutive win.

In a frantic first quarter a steam train would have struggled to stop the Force.

Racing out to an 8-4 lead, the North Harbour side showed they meant business. One almost had to feel sorry for Flames' shooters Jodi Te Huna and Belinda Colling, who felt the full brunt of the Force defence from the first whistle.

The home side's promising start, however, soon fell apart as the Flames settled into their game.

After equalling the score just before the break, the Flames scored twice in the final minute which handed them a 12-10 lead at the first break.

A run of unforced errors from the Force early in the second quarter saw the Flames extend their lead to 15-12.

The Colling and Te Huna combination, which has proved one of the most reliable in the competition, came to the fore while at the other end it was a typical shaky performance from the Force duo of Teresa Tairi and Daneka Wipiiti.

The Flames never surrendered the lead throughout the quarter and went into the halftime break ahead 26-22.

Some torrid Force defence created several turnovers in the third quarter, but the Flames were equally as unrelenting on defence and more often than not the Force were unable to convert turnovers into vital points.

The Force fell victim to a horror run of missed goals late in the quarter which allowed the Flames to surge ahead to a 41-35 lead going into the last quarter.

The Force fought back to within three in the dying minutes, but their comeback came too late as the clock wound down.