Sunshine Coast Lightning has reigned victorious against Adelaide Thunderbirds, securing the largest winning margin of any team this season in the Round 12 clash held at Priceline Stadium on 22 July.
Lightning Head Coach Noeline Taurua said the 31-goal Suncorp Super Netball win had set the team in good stead as the race to finals continued.
“We knew going into the match we needed to come away with maximum points and this win puts us in a good position leading in to next weekend’s clash against NSW Swifts,” Taurua said.
“We’ve got to get into the top four. There are five teams in the running and anything can change between the second and fourth positions.
“With two more games to go in the competition round robin, we’ve just got to make sure we control what we can and do our best during the week to prepare ourselves.”
Taurua said leading by such a large margin throughout the Round 12 match had allowed Lightning to introduce a number of players to the court beyond the starting seven.
“I was really happy with how Cara – our goal shooter – went. I thought she offered us something different. We got a bit of mobility there.
“Jacqui Russell has been out on court previously with other combinations that we have and I was really pleased with her performance.
“Erena Mikaere warmed up as she went. It was always going to be a big task going one-on-one with Shimona Nelson and she put out a good effort.
“All three players have been training really well so it’s good to be able to do that.”
The game marked Lightning player Stephanie Wood’s fiftieth national league game.
The acclaimed goal attack is growing from strength to strength, having recently been selected for the Samsung Diamonds team that will represent Australia in the 2018 Quad Series and Constellation Cup in September and October.
The team will take on NSW Swifts at USC Stadium on Saturday, 28 July. The match will be broadcast live on the Nine Network and the Netball Live app.
Sunshine Coast Lightning 2018 memberships are available at sunshinecoastlightning.com.au.
