KEY POINTS:
Yvonne Willering is imploring her Force players to care less about each other and more about winning New Zealand netball's top prize.
The Force made some amends for their previous week's collapse to the Diamonds, with a perfunctory 60-34 win over the hapless Flyers yesterday to lift them to second on the National Bank Cup table.
But Willering was still not convinced her team have acted on the "get tough" message after three rounds.
"There's too much caring for each other, trying to give the ball as nice as we can. These days, the game is far more physical and we've got to let the ball do the work," Willering said.
"We've got to spend more time on each player doing their job. It's hard for me to know who's playing well, because they're covering for each other.
"You can't help that bond - some of our players have been together for quite a long time - but you've still got to be competitive."
The Force went through the motions with the young Flyers, who face another season without a win.
Willering used all of her bench players, in preparation for next weekend's away game with the unpredictable Rebels. As Vilimaina Davu is home in Fiji with other netball commitments, Lorna Suafoa started at goal keep - her first court time since wrenching her knee pre-season - but was rested after a quarter.
Leana de Bruin controlled the game from the back of the court, while Catherine Latu was virtually unimpeded, shooting the Force out to a 29-16 lead at halftime, which grew by almost calculated increments.
The power base in this competition looks similar to the last, especially after the victories of last year's finalists, the Magic and the Sting.
The Magic, back at the top of the table alone, finally got some feisty opposition on Saturday. The gutsy Flames shot to a nine-goal advantage, held a 29-27 lead at halftime, until the defending champions clicked into a rhythm for the first time this season and powered away, winning 61-48.
"We still haven't jelled as a team, we need a little more time together," said Magic coach Noeline Taurua. "Give us two more games."
The Sting should not read that as a forfeit ahead of their match with the Magic this weekend. The southerners don't need an excuse to engage in a close fight with the Magic, after they hammered the Shakers, 81-33, in Invercargill on Saturday.
Just when it looked like the Sting were suffering from a lack of experience this season, they struck back with the huge win, thanks largely to veteran shooter Donna Willkins (Loffhagen) and new recruit Daneka Wipiiti, who shot 54 from 65 (83 per cent).
The Sting now share second rung on the ladder with the Force - one point ahead of the Flames and the Diamonds. The Aucklanders continued their winning momentum beating the Rebels, 46-4, on Friday night - Anna Scarlett and Maria Tutaia the stand-out performers for the Diamonds.
