Pelorus, Quins to meet again in premier final

The favoured sides have booked their places in the 2024 Marlborough premier netball final - albeit in vastly different styles.

Two contrasting semifinals were played out at Stadium 2000 tonight.

While Pelorus, who have carried all before them in the latter stages of the season, romped to a commanding 79-38 victory over the Awatere Tussocks, their final opponents, Harlequins Totalspan, were forced to battle all the way as they forged a 52-47 win over a very competitive Tokomaru side.

Ultimately tonight’s results have set up a rematch of the 2023 final, where Pelorus claimed the club’s first premier crown, but at times in the evening’s late game it seemed the anticipated script may have had to be rewritten.

Tokomaru, who beat Pelorus earlier in the season, matched Harlequins stride-for-stride until the latter stages, where Quins lifted their defensive intensity, creating a couple of critical turnovers which swung the result their way.

Pivotal for the victors were defenders Wendy Trolove and Poppy Lane, who continued to hunt for interceptions and maintained pressure on their circle rivals until the final whistle.

At the other end, despite valiant attempts, Toko were unable to stop the flow of lofted passes into influential shooter Wiri Bristowe, who kept the scoreboard ticking over.

The sides’ respective abilities to find their shooters proved decisive with both teams enjoying an almost equal share of possession.

Midcourters Bridget Gane, Simone Pedersen and Sophie Robinson worked hard to maintain an attacking rhythm, while Lauren Murray worked well in tandem with Bristowe, her experience in big games coming to the fore.

Teish O’Connell was again a standout for Toko, operating at both goal defence and centre, while Shannon McManaway, Gi Burtenshaw, Chloe Devir, Eden Hika and Ayla Looms contested ever pass, every possession, as the pressure came on in the final quarter, the level of support from the bench and the crowd growing ever louder.

The Picton crew also had plenty to thank the ever-dependable duo of Gemma Hika and Kayla Wilson for.

Toko have shown this season that, when they are in the right frame of mind, they can beat any side in front of them and tonight they came to play, ultimately their inability to build a considerable lead when they were in the ascendancy costing them a place in the decider.

On the other hand, this was a timely pre-final workout for Harlequins, albeit with plenty of nervous moments, and will serve to harden their resolve for the job ahead.

In front of them in the title decider will be an in-form Pelorus outfit.

Tonight, they quickly assumed control of their clash with Awatere, shooting out to a 38-19 advantage at the halftime break.

With key shooter Paige Lovell enjoying a welter of possession to work with the Dark Blues laid down a final marker.

They have talent to burn in midcourt, with Jordy Peipi, Kelsie Fitzpatrick, Brittney Lyons and Stormy Tupara sharing duties, while Ella Smith, who had an outstanding night, plus Oriana Houra are rock solid at the back.

Another defensive option, Mya Gibbons, played only a small part in proceedings before leaving the court with an ankle injury.

For the Tussocks this was a trip into unknown territory, having never played in a premier semifinal before. They struggled with the pace of the game, their turnovers punished and the passes put under unrelenting pressure.

However, as they have done all season after being promoted from grade one, they rose to the occasion and thoroughly enjoyed themselves, adding a fresh, country flavour to the competition.

Now it is on to the decider, with Pelorus going in with a 2-1 edge after games this season. In round one Quins prevailed 46-44, however Pelorus won the next two encounters, 55-42 and 48-46.

Given the fact that last year’s premier final between these sides was decided by a single goal, and based on results this time around, another thriller is on the cards when the competition comes to a close under the Stadium roof on Saturday, August 31.

Semifinal scores:

Pelorus Edridge Contracting 79 (Paige Lovell 56/61, Cara Gallop 9/11, Laura Evans 14/15) Awatere 38 (Bobby Childs 23/30, Ashley Childs 4/6, Anna Hewson 11/15). Quarter scores (winning team first): 18-10, 20-9, 17-10, 24-9.

Harlequins Totalspan 52 (Jack Frew 7/10, Wiri Bristowe 35/45, Lauren Murray 10/14) Tokomaru Crafar Crouch 47 (Dakota Tepuia 11/16, Gemma Hika 34/41, Kayla Wilson 2/5). Quarter scores: 8-10, 16-13, 14-15, 14-9.