Perfection by Dunn takes Steel to win over Pulse
- 4 hours ago
- 3 min read
A faultless performance from Southern Steel shooter Aliyah Dunn helped her team net maximum ANZ Premiership points for the southerners as they eye a spot in the Finals Series.
A telling third quarter turned the match, the Steel beating the Central Pulse 52-43 in front of a sold-out crowd at TSB Arena in Wellington with Dunn landing all of her 34 attempts at goal.
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The nine-goal difference looked like a comfortable win over the fifth-placed Pulse, but they were hounded by a desperate home side for the full 60 minutes, the hosts coming within two of the Steel but never able to break through in a tightly contested first half.
Dunn starred in the shooting circle, but Steel captain Kimiora Poi was a workhorse for her side with a massive 43 feeds, three intercepts and a general nuisance on defence as her team took control of the match in the last 15 minutes of play.
At the other end of the court, Carys Stythe’s long reach proved troublesome while wing Renee Savai’inaea came into her own in the fourth spell.
The two teams met in Round 4 with the Steel winning at home by seven goals and coach Wendy Frew went with what has become a regular starting seven for her side.
In what was a must-win for the Pulse, coach Anna Andrews-Tasola opted for Ine-Mari Venter at shooter despite a strong performance from Khiarna Williams last week.
Experienced links across the court were fast into action for the Steel, polished with their ball movement through court, defensive efforts and timing in the shooting circle – the visitors building an early four-goal lead.
At one end of the court, Aliyah Dunn was an easy target for her feeders while at the other the Steel defensive unit forced plenty of indecision for their opponents.
With a 9-2 advantage, Andrews-Tasola asked to talk to her charges as the Pulse attempted to claw themselves back into the match.
On the back of a united defensive effort, they closed the gap to four and despite flirting with the held ball rule, went into the first break trailing just 11-15.
There were no changes immediately after the whistle as both teams looked to consolidate on their opening quarter – the Pulse bringing the early pressure in the second spell.
Defender Holly Comyns started to shut down the easy option into Dunn as the southern wheels started to wobble with just two goals difference on the scoreboard – the latter finding some attention from the umpires for offensive penalties.
With neither team able to take the game by the scruff, the Pulse was the first side to turn to its bench with Williams replacing Venter in the shooting circle on the countdown to halftime.
The combination tested the Steel defence, but the hosts went into the main break down 22-26 and opted to switch back to Venter on the resumption of play in the third quarter.
Errors from both teams marred the opening minutes of the spell but it was the Steel who settled first – a couple of key rebounds from Stythe helping the visitors extend their buffer back to eight, prompting the return of Williams to the Pulse line.
An umpire warning to both goal defenders, Parris Mason and Khanye’-Lii Munro-Nonoa, showed a lift in intensity and Williams added a different dynamic into the Pulse shooting circle. But the hosts struggled to find their rhythm on transition from defence onto attack going into the last turn trailing 32-41.
