Netball: Magic ready for challenge

Maria Tutaia in an earlier match against the Mystics. Photo / Getty Images

The post mortem is complete. The Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic will not dwell on last week's horror performance against the Adelaide Thunderbirds as they prepare for the opening match of their finals campaign.

The Magic take on the red-hot Melbourne Vixens across the Tasman in tomorrow's major semifinal, the winner of which will earn direct passage in to the ANZ Championship grand final.

It is the route the Magic are eager to take, but slowing the Vixens juggernaut will not be easy.

The talented Melbourne side, who have set the pace for most of the season, have been outstanding in their run in to the finals with huge wins over the Canterbury Tactix and the Central Pulse over the past two weeks.

Last week's clinical 41-goal victory over the Pulse was particularly impressive, with the Vixens racking up a record 80 goals while still managing to get 11 players out on court.

The Magic meanwhile produced their worst performance in two years of the transtasman league, crashing to a 54-35 defeat at the hands of the Adelaide Thunderbirds.

The two sides couldn't come in to this match in more contrasting form, but Magic shooter Maria Tutaia said come playoffs time everyone goes back to square one.

She said her side can't afford to let last week's result play on their mind and they must start the finals afresh.

"It was definitely a performance that we're just going to have to dump in the rubbish bin and forget about," the young Silver Fern said.

"[The Vixens] are a tough enough side to stop when we're on top of our game, let alone when we're low on confidence.

"So we can't afford to worry too much about what happened against the Thunderbirds, we just have to move on."

But Tutaia admits it is not easy to simply consign a loss like that to history.

The Magic were dealt a major blow to their pride as their big name players failed to deliver on their reputations.

Tutaia in particular came in for a lot of criticism for her performance after she and shooting partner Irene van Dyk were thoroughly outplayed by the tenacious Thunderbirds defensive line.

The 22-year-old, who is known for her ability to calmly slot the long shots under pressure, looked rattled last weekend as she allowed the imposing Adelaide defenders to get under her skin.

Tutaia's general play also suffered as she struggled to deal with the relentless nature of the one-on-one style of defence the Australians employ.

Of course Tutaia doesn't need anyone pointing out where she went wrong, for she is acutely aware of the areas she needs to improve on.

Tutaia said she has no doubt the Vixens, whose defensive line includes Australian internationals Bianca Chatfield and Julie Corletto, will make life just as tough for her side.

But after last week's harsh netballing lesson the 1.88m shooter knows just what needs to be done.

"You've got to be mentally prepared to take the knocks.

"You've got to do the preparation and work off the ball to create space, and you've got to accept that they will contest every ball," said Tutaia.

"It is a huge challenge, but we're all big enough girls to be able to combat that."

PLAYOFFS

* Major semifinal - 4.30pm tomorrow, Hisense Arena, Melbourne
* Melbourne Vixens v Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic
* Minor semifinal - 9pm Monday, ETSA Park, Adelaide
* Adelaide Thunderbirds v Southern Steel
* The winner of the major semifinal clash will advance straight to the grand final, while the loser will battle it out with the victor of the minor semifinal for a final place.