One turnover, a “treasured possession” that is all NSW Swifts coach Briony Akle says her side need to beat the high flying Thunderbirds and secure their third Super Netball premiership in five years.
Swifts are yet to celebrate a victory against the Adelaide outfit this season. Their Round 2 clash ended in a 25-25 draw after a power outage ended the game early and Thunderbirds had a 60-57 win in Round 14.
Then the semi-final clash went the Thunderbirds way after a thrilling extra-time period.
Akle said while tough the Thunderbirds were not unbeatable.
“I think the games we have lost in the past to Thunderbirds have been by two or three – so that’s one turnover, a treasured possession,” Akle said.
“For us it’s all about getting the basics right, our game plan doesn’t change that much, it is just executing for that little bit longer and having that mindset around that execution in those close moments.”
Akle said the loss to the Thunderbirds was a motivator and the excitement surrounding grand final day would far outweigh the fear of repeating the mistakes from the semi-final.
It is the first Super Netball finals series for the Thunderbirds while the Swifts go into the game armed with a squad filled with athletes with finals experience, including new signing Romelda Aiken-George, who has played in six finals series and captain Helen Housby, playing her third grand final in five years.
Housby said the Thunderbirds semi-final was already “forgotten” and she wasn’t going into the final thinking about revenge or redemption.
“The excitement and the will to win another premiership is what drives me more than anything.” Housby said.
“I’m not going into the game filled with disappointment or revenge, it’s more about doing what we know we can do and sticking to our game plan.
“We want to make it all about us, we don’t care who we play in the final, we are just focused on what we can do to control the outcome.”
Housby and Aiken-George won’t have an easy night in the shooting circle with Thunderbirds’ Shamera Sterling confirmed fit to play after injuring her ankle at training earlier this week.
“They have got world class players all across court,” Housby said.
“We know that we have the players that can counteract whatever they’ve got to put out against us.
“In the past when we have lost games it has been a lapse in judgment and lapse in concentration and not working that extra pass to the goal.
“Hopefully in this grand final we can find that little bit of extra smarts in our game.”
The grand final clash between Swifts and Thunderbirds is on Saturday, at 7pm at John Cain Arena.
Originally published as Super Netball grand final 2023: Swifts coach Briony Akle reveals how NSW can beat Adelaide Thunderbirds
