The Curtin Hamersley Comets have continued their meteoric rise in 2020 with a dogged 58-53 win over the Western Roar in the minor final of the Gold Industry Group West Australian Netball league.
The Comets, who were winless last season, faced a Roar side who had won their previous two clashes and were keen to repeat their 2019 Grand Final appearance.
While it was the Roar who broke out to an early 7-3 lead, the Comets monstered them for the remainder of the term to set up a 16-11 quarter time lead they never relinquished.
Comets skipper Sarah East praised the work ethic of her side, whose speed and defensive pressure proved the different compared to previous matches with the Roar.
“We worked really hard on our units and our structures, we had a good look at the games and we knew where we let ourselves down in both,” she said.
“I think we put in a really good performance today, not quite the full sixty minutes but it’s much improved.”
East’s incredible accuracy under the net, scoring 35 times from 36 attempts proved the difference on the scoreboard, but it was the Comets’ ability to halt Roar runs which mattered most.
After a goal-for-goal second term, the Roar interchanged three players in the third in an attempt to inject fresh legs into the game.
However, a Comets defence lead by stalwarts Chelsea Bartlett and Ella Taylor proved too difficult for the Roar to get past, despite goal attack Tess Gee-Cransberg’s best efforts with a game-high 37 goals.
The Roar came hard in the final term, but a goal from an intercept by Comets centre Lindal Rohde halted the charge and gave the Comets a five-goal buffer they never surrendered.
“There were so many critical moments defensively where we got the ball,” East said.
“We were really calm in attack and were able to convert just to keep that lead.”
While the Roar’s season is over, the Comets head from one do-or-die clash into another.
They will face the East Freo Sharks at 8.30pm on October 9 for a spot in the 2020 Grand Final.
Results
- 20U: East Freo Sharks defeated Southside Demons, 58-55.
- 20U Western Roar defeated Rangers, 50-39.
- Men: Curtin Hamersley Comets defeated Southside Demons, 45-44.
- Men: West Coast Warriors defeated Western Roar, 44-42.
