If you want to win, you've got to shoot.
It was as painful a lesson as East Club SportsEdge could have learned in their upset 34-28 loss to an enthused Nga Tawa in the opening game during Monday night's premier A netball competition.
Wholesale changes throughout the match, including no less than three players wearing the goal shoot bib at different times, did little to improve SportsEdge's lack of conversions from their circle penetrations.
It was only goal attack Aneka Erueti, who likewise struggled under the net, managing to pot six excellent long range shots which kept her team in the game.
For her part, Nga Tawa coach Marama Cameron kept faith that her starting lineup could do the job, making only one substitution for the fourth quarter, and the teenagers repaid her as they hung in there and kept their hustle up.
Getting desperate, like their goal shooting, SportsEdge's normally crisp passing exchanges through the court deserted them the buildup of costly turnovers seeing a two-point lead vanish as Nga Tawa ended up cantering away with a 10-2 final period.
Nga Tawa's shooters Britta Turner and Georgia Nugent-O'Leary did not have an easy night as they had to overcome some uncompromising defence and a few close contacts to get opportunities, but the latter rebounded very well and saved some crucial possession at times.
SportsEdge could not capitalise on the good work livewire wing attack Karaihi Peina was generating on both offence and in disrupting Nga Tawa's clearances, although eventually wing defence Kelly Davenport caught up with her to close that portal down.
The favourites led 9-8 at quarter-time but it should have been more given their weight of possession and territory.
Goal shoot Kiri Wilson was later moved to goal defence where she re-gathered her confidence and did well. Yet a move back into the shooting circle in the fourth quarter was not prosperous, perhaps owing to her hand not being 100 per cent.
Julie Rowan and Terehia Gardiner would also have a go at GS but could not produce the desired effect.
Nga Tawa goal defence Danielle Gray was caught out a couple of times and then took a nasty spill, yet she persevered and by the match's conclusion was tipping away SportEdge's long passes and swooping on fumbles.
Nga Tawa had turned it around for a 17-16 lead at halftime which could have been more if their final goal didn't come milliseconds after the buzzer.
Now starting to lose a little structure through the court, SportsEdge still had Erueti sinking three straight long shots to see them back to a shaky 26-24 advantage.
But with Davenport gaining a measure of parity with Peina and SportsEdge giving away infringements and lost possession, the schoolgirls' fundamentals and patience proved enough to see them home.
The Nga Tawa victory paved the way for a successful night for the schools at Springvale Stadium with Phillips Electrical Wanganui High School beating club side Wanganui Car Centre Kaierau 64-48 and Collegiate rolling Marist 45-32.
The WHS win means they went through round one unbeaten and are now clear favourites to win the competition heading into round two next Monday.
WHS coach Lisa Murphy said it was good team effort with young 14-year-old Ruhia Tamati stepping up to the plate for the second week in a row.
"Our goal keep Kelera Kuruyabaki had the flu so we brought Ruhia in again and did a little bit of a shuffle round, which didn't seem to disrupt the girls at all," Murphy said.
"It was once again an all round team effort and we head into round two in very good form."
In a physical encounter the fitness levels and possession statistics combined to provide Collegiate with a handsome win over Marist.
Collegiate coach Nicole Dryden fielded the same seven players for the first three quarters of the match to set up a margin to allow her to work on other combinations during the final quarter.
"We were up by a margin after the third quarter and that allowed me to give some other combinations a try and they worked very well."