Event Details
Adelaide Thunderbirds v West Coast Fever
Saturday 22 May, 5pm WST
Netball SA Stadium, Adelaide
Broadcast Details
Telstra TV and Netball Live app
Most Recent Meetings
Round 14, 2020: Adelaide Thunderbirds defeated West Coast Fever 64-63
Round 1, 2020: West Coast Fever defeated Adelaide Thunderbirds 74-62
Round 8, 2019: West Coast Fever defeated Adelaide Thunderbirds 53-52
The Situation
West Coast Fever have won their opening three games of the season against the other top four teams from 2020 but have been challenged on each occasion, fighting back from early deficits to secure impressive wins.
They will be looking to continue their form in Adelaide and reverse their loss against the Thunderbirds in the final round of last year’s regular season.
Captain Courtney Bruce, who made the Round 3 Nissan Net Points Team of the Week after five intercepts and six gains, said she was looking forward to the game in Adelaide.
“We’re very excited, we actually don’t mind travelling, so we are stoked to get on the road and come up against Thunderbirds.
“It is obviously going to be a battle, we’ve had some really good battles against them over the last couple years, so we are just excited to get out there on that Adelaide court.
“As a group we haven’t been looking any more forward than one game at a time. Things can change so suddenly in the world that we’re living in, so whether we are travelling for a couple of days or we end up being away for a week we are really just focussing on each game.”
The Thunderbirds are yet to win a game this season but have shown steady improvement after narrowing their margin in losses to Collingwood (4 goals), Firebirds (11) and Giants (14).
Key Match Ups
Centre v Centre
Verity Charles v Maisie Nankivell
Verity Charles was in great form last week, displaying the passing skills that saw her selected in the Australian Diamonds squad to notch up 24 goal assists from 32 feeds and play a key role in Fever’s comeback win against the Lightning. She will face Thunderbirds Centre Maisie Nankivell, who totalled 16 assists from 37 feeds for her team last week.
Goal Keeper v Goal Shooter
Courtney Bruce v Lenize Potgieter
Potgieter has been the Thunderbirds leading goal scorer so far this season with 80 goals, supported by Samantha Gooden with 48. This combination will be another challenge for star Fever defender Courtney Bruce, who has been in terrific form and leads the SSN in intercepts with 10 in three games. Both Potgieter (South Africa) and Bruce (Australia) have represented their countries on the international, adding a wealth of experience to their respective sides.
Goal Shooter v Goal Keeper
Jhaniele Fowler v Shamera Sterling
It will be the battle of the Sunshine Girls when Jamaican international teammates Jhaniele Fowler and Shamera Sterling meet in Adelaide on Saturday. Fowler continues to entertain fans with her high scoring and last week, became the first player to tally more than 100 Nissan Net Points in a game this season after scoring 59 goals at 97 per cent.
