Perfect Fowler-Nembhard achieves landmark and Fever win

MELBOURNE (CMC):

ACE JAMAICA goal shooter Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard scored 50 goals without missing, including her 8,000th Super Netball League goal, to steer the table-leading West Coast Fever to a 69-62 win against newcomers Melbourne Mavericks on Saturday in Australia.

The 34-year-old goal shooter was part of the slick Fever offence, which delivered three quarters of relentless play and extinguished any hope of a maiden victory for the Mavericks in their second match of the season on home soil.

Her Sunshine Girls teammate, Romelda Aiken-George, was near perfect, and she enabled the Adelaide Thunderbirds to survive a huge scare and notch a thrilling 60-57 overtime win against the Sunshine Coast Lightning at UniSC Arena.

The Fever trailed 17-14 after the first quarter at John Cain Arena, and they were challenged late, but in between were too strong for first-timers Mavericks, who had looked likely to pull off the season’s biggest upset.

Fowler-Nembhard continued to shine brightly, showcasing her exceptional form early in the season with another standout performance.

Supported by Sunshine Girls teammate, Shanice Beckford and Kelsey Browne, the Fever secured their third consecutive win of the season.

After missing two first-quarter shots, the Fever did not miss another attempt for the duration of the contest, burying their last 54 unblemished to lead 40-32 at half-time, and 54-43 after three periods.

“We knew the Mavericks were going to come hard at us,” Fowler-Nembhard said.

“It was good for us to hold our composure and limit the amount of balls we were turning over.”

The Fever showed intent from the opening whistle, but the Mavericks displayed what seemed like a new-found confidence with a diversity of attacking options, and they held a one-point lead a little before the critical Power Five moment.

A run of four consecutive Fever goals to start the second term had the Mavericks on the back foot, trailing by one.

In addition, the defensive strategy of the Fever proved highly effective in unsettling the Mavericks’ attacking rhythm, and the Melbourne side struggled to contain their opponents’ rapid transitions through the middle, finding themselves lagging.

There was a renewed sense of vigour from the Mavericks in the second half, but they still struggled to contain Fowler-Nembhard, the relentless scoring pressure and stifling defence from the Fever putting them in a hole.

11-POINT ADVANTAGE

As the Power Five moment approached, the Fever held an 11-point advantage, and they maintained their dominance heading into the final quarter.

Aiken-George finished with 43 goals from 48 attempts, and a pile-on looked to be on the cards when title-holders Thunderbirds raced to a 17-6 lead at the end of the first quarter before the visitors were progressively reeled in and almost overhauled by the valiant Lightning.

The game began with a flurry of errors, centre pass missteps, poor passes, and some defenders hungry for the ball. Though the teams traded turnovers, it was the Lightning who fell behind.

There was a better output from the Lightning in the second quarter, their defenders hunting the ball as a tactic to prevent it from getting in to Aiken-George.

Still, Thunderbirds continued to dominate and held a 31-20 lead at half-time, but Lightning came roaring back in an erratic phase of play featuring multiple wayward passes.

Aiken-George accidentally called for an injury time-out and had to go off, and a flurry of substitutions from both sides meant the court looked far different than it did at the start, and this enabled the Lightning to work their way back into contention – outscoring their opponents 16-8 in the period to trail 39-36 after three quarters.

Thunderbirds showed poise and maturity in the controlled way they played, though they were facing a Lightning team carrying momentum with their home crowd behind them.

The accuracy of Aiken-George began to decrease, as she missed some easy shots under the ring. She then committed an offensive contact that allowed the Lightning a chance to tie the contest, but they turned the ball over – a recurring theme for them in the match.

In a controversial finish, Liz Watson appeared to grab the ball out of the hands of Lauren Frew in the mid-court with no call being made, and with Reilley Batcheldor left alone under their ring, her final goal meant sent the match into overtime.

Aiken-George regained her rhythm in the overtime period, and Thunderbirds showed no fear, happy to settle for the single goals to clinch the win.