Netball: Teams target their shooters to fire-up semifinal dreams

By JULIE ASH

Auckland Diamond Victoria Edward and Force defender Linda Vagana agree on one thing heading into tomorrow's battle of the bridge.

Both expect the match will be won or lost in the shooting circle.

The fourth and final semifinal spot is up for grabs when the two sides meet tomorrow at the North Shore Events Centre in the fifth round of the National Bank Cup.

With just three rounds to play, the Diamonds are in fifth place on six points with two wins and two losses while the Force are a point ahead in fourth, also with two wins and two losses and a bonus point.

A win this weekend would go a long way to securing a spot in the semis alongside the Southern Sting, Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic and Canterbury Flames.

With both sides evenly matched throughout the court, the sticking point for both has been the accuracy of their shooting.

On two occasions the Force have lost matches, despite having more attempts at goal, and the Diamonds have also been a little shaky.

"I guess it is always going to come down to shooting really," Edward said.

"The thing is we are so even and that is why it is going to be such a big match because whoever wins this is probably going to make the top four.

"We are well aware of that and we are wanting to give quality ball to our shooters and make sure that they put it through the hoop."

The Diamonds will take some confidence from the improved performance of Shelley Norris, who is now the fifth best shooter in the competition with an average of 84 per cent.

However she will have her work cut out this week contending with the experienced Force defence.

"Shelley has really come a long way. She gets in there and is learning how to get that real toughness in there which is what you need, especially against a team like the Force.

"But Janine Topia has been shooting really well at training too."

Where the Force do have an advantage over the Diamonds is that they have endless options throughout the entire court.

The return of Kate Dowling, who has missed the past few weeks with a foot injury, gives them another option on defence, and Fijian representative Matelita Shaw proved last weekend she was more than capable of stepping into goal attack.

Force defence captain Vagana said that although they took a lot of confidence from their 80-29 win over the Flyers last week, her side's error rate is still far too high.

"It was really good to see a lot of things happen that we had practised and it was quite structured as well," she said.

"But at the same time there were errors in there that you can't afford when you are playing teams like the Diamonds and the Sting, who we are still to come up against."

Like Edward, Vagana believes the match will be decided on attack.

"I think the defensive ends are the strength in both teams," Vagana said. "I think it will come down to our shooting ends really and how the middies [midcourt players] link with them."

* Auckland Diamonds vs North Harbour Force, North Shore Events Centre, tomorrow 1pm

National Bank Cup squads and draw