Netball: Maia Wilson near perfect as Stars close in on playoff spot

Maia Wilson. Photosport

Guided by an almost perfect shooting performance from Maia Wilson, the Northern Stars are a step closer to the ANZ Premiership finals series after a 58-47 victory over the winless Southern Steel in Invercargill last night.

Wilson’s career-best shooting continued with 98 per cent accuracy — 42 from 43 — converting superb ball from the Stars feeders.

This loss was the Steel’s 17th in a row but they were still in the game at halftime, down by four but remaining competitive, and even took out the final quarter. But the Stars owned the ‘championship’ third quarter, winning those 15 minutes by eight goals, mentally wearing down a home side desperate for victory in 2023.

The Stars can now focus on their final regular season match on Sunday against the Northern Mystics to secure a place in the top three.

The fourth-placed Mainland Tactix must beat the Pulse in Wellington on Saturday and the Mystics in Auckland on Monday to have any chance of taking the final playoff spot from the Stars, who boast a five-point buffer.

With Australian Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich watching from the stands, intensive defensive pressure forced the Steel into early handling errors and the Stars raced out to an 8-2 lead.

But the Steel responded with a run of four, after Kate Burley and Te Huinga Reo Selby Rickit combined well to frustrate the Stars shooters and Saviour Tui again on song in the shooting circle, nicely fed by shooting companion Georgia Heffernan. They closed the gap to 14-11 at the end of the first quarter and got within one early in the second.

Having brought Jamie Hume on at goal attack after the break to replace the off-kilter Amorangi Malesala, the Stars pushed ahead again. Player of the match Mila Reuelu-Buchanan (with 56 circle edge feeds for the match) and fellow midcourter Gina Crampton found Wilson inside the circle with quick and accurate hands.

But the Steel were sticking with them, and with Burley making four gains and four deflections, they were only four goals off the pace at halftime.

And then the Stars turned on the afterburners. They ramped up their defence — starting from Holly Fowler and Elle Temu making it increasingly difficult for the Steel to get the ball in to their shooters — and quickly switched on to the offensive whenever they nabbed turnover ball.