Jaegers Looking To Lay Platform In Grafton

Newcastle Herald

Saturday April 28, 2007

By RENEE VALENTINE

HUNTER Jaegers coach Jon Fletcher will send his troops out to play with high intensity when they open their fourth and final national netball league season against the Perth Orioles in Grafton tonight.

"We'll be looking to play with a bit of flair and we won't be holding anything back you've just got to go out and have a crack this year," Fletcher said.

"I don't know whether they've got any weaknesses but we'll certainly be looking to play an up-tempo game and put a lot of defensive pressure on and see if we can expose them."

The Jaegers boast just five familiar faces, with seven newcomers in the 12-player squad travelling to Grafton, and inexperience could be crucial tonight.

"We have got a lot of options and most of them are going fairly well, but certainly under pressure, that would be where we'll find what's going to work and what's not going to work," Fletcher said.

"Although they are all fairly new, we're quite pleased with how they are going and, if we need to make any changes, we've got plenty of girls dying to get out there."

Of last year's squad, only Jane Menzies, Lara Welham, Emma Koster, Tiffany Lincoln and Narelle Eather remain, and those five will be expected to be on court in the early stages.

Fletcher pinpointed tall timbers Caitlin Bassett and Kate Beveridge in Perth's goal circle as one of the Orioles' danger areas.

Both stand at 192 centimetres tall and Bassett was the national league's most prolific scorer last season. A solid performance will be crucial for the young Jaegers, who face competition heavyweights Adelaide Thunderbirds, Melbourne Phoenix and Sydney Swifts in their next three matches.

"We want to come out of this one in pretty good shape to start building some confidence with each game," Fletcher said. "We would certainly like to come out of it having played well because we do have a tough stretch coming up."

Meanwhile, Jaegers Kimberley Borger and Lauren Russell were named yesterday in the 2007-08 Australian 19-and-under talent squad.

Newcastle netballers Natarlia Manning and Samantha Poolman and Charlestown player Kellyann Grayson were named in the 17-and-under national squad.

JAEGERS v ORIOLES

Tonight at Grafton Stadium, 7.30pm

HEAD-TO-HEAD

Overall: Played 6, Jaegers won 4,

lost 2. Last season: Played 2,

Jaegers won 0, lost 2.

FINISH LAST SEASON

Jaegers 7th on six points,

Orioles 6th with 10 points

MATCH FACTS

* Jaegers captain Jane Menzies

makes her 45th national league

appearance tonight.

* The Jaegers take five debutantes to

Grafton in Maryanne Hamilton,

Alex Harding, Jessica Mansell, Lauren

Russell and Kimberley Borger.

* Orioles mentor Sue Gaudion

makes her national league coaching

debut tonight.

© 2007 Newcastle Herald

Back to News Index | Back to Home