Kestrels Shake Off Determined Orioles

The Age

Saturday June 16, 2007

Carley Jellett

THE Melbourne Kestrels have kept their season on track with a narrow two-goal win over the Perth Orioles at the State Netball and Hockey Centre last night.

What was supposed to be a percentage booster for the Kestrels against the Orioles, who sit second last on the ladder, turned into a gritty 50-48 win.

"Unfortunately it didn't eventuate as I would have liked," coach Jane Searle said after the match. "We could have broken away more in that first half but I think that our errors kept them in it a bit."

Despite the closeness of the game, Searle was happy with the win. "I would have loved to have buried them but at the same time they're a quality team and they're really hitting their straps now. They're tough opposition," she said.

"We can definitely improve but I'm happy with the win really."

The Kestrels shot out to an early lead but the Orioles mounted a challenge. A steal from wing defence Brooke Thompson resulted in back-to-back Kestrels goals that stalled the Orioles' momentum.

In the first quarter, Kestrels shooter Caity Thwaites was well held by her taller, stronger opponent in Susan Fuhrmann. But the Kestrels mids fed the ball cleverly to Thwaites who scored 10 goals from 12 shots in the first quarter.

Despite their six-goal quarter-time lead, the Kestrels were not convincing. Both sides turned the ball over and made crucial errors in a sometimes sloppy opening quarter.

In the second quarter, the Kestrels improved, albeit marginally. This, coupled with the inaccuracy of the Orioles - they had 18 attempts for a return of just seven goals - saw them extend their lead to eight goals at half-time.

A raft of changes for the Kestrels at the long break did little to improve the standard of the match with the Orioles pegging the margin back gradually before reducing it to just two goals at the last change.

The Orioles remained close in the final quarter with substitute shooter Caitlin Bassett scoring 26 second-half goals from 33 attempts.

© 2007 The Age

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