Both Bull Sharks netball sides are hunting a win after a pair of disappointing losses.
On Sunday Bond takes on the powerful Ipswich Jets at Nissan Arena, the Jets sit respectively at the top of the Sapphire ladder this season.
Our Ruby and Sapphire girls will be giving it all they’ve got to stay in contention for top four spots.
Sapphire
The last time they met:
Bull Sharks and Jets drew 66-66.
The opponent:
With the Jets sitting comfortably at the top of the ladder, they have been the team to beat all season. Their consistency makes them a tough side to take on and they seem to keep adding top level players to their revolving roster. Their latest addition is ex-silver fern goal shooter, Cat Tuivaiti, someone we will have to keep an eye on this game.
Shuffling the magnets:
We welcome the chance to train twice this week. The added consistency is something we are grateful for after a disrupted week last week, with a mid-week game backed up by a Sunday showdown. It is looking promising for our side with all 11 players fully fit and available to play.
Ones to look out for:
Wing Defence, Sasha-May Flegler, will be one to look out for as she takes to the court this weekend. In our earlier match against the Jets, she had an outstanding game and she’s continued developing her Wing Defence skill set over the season, so we are expecting an even better show from her this time around.
The focus:
This week we need to be clinical in the execution of our game plan. One of the biggest focuses and challenges we face is keeping ourselves mentally in the game for the full 60 minutes.
Final words:
This is another big game for us. Our girls have put in their best-efforts time and time again, and the girls continue to put in 110%. We want to see them all rewarded for their sacrifices and hard work, and winning against the Jets would be second to none.
With Rebecca Stower.
Ruby
Last time they met:
Bull Sharks lost 54-50.
The opponent:
The Jets are a formidable side, one we faced off against in round six of this season. It was a close fought game. They are currently sitting one spot above us on the ladder, and we would like to take it from them.
Shuffling the magnets:
We are fortunate to have no changes to our playing list this week. All 10 of our exceptional players are in good health and remain available to play.
Ones to look out for:
Our defensive players will be the ones to look out for. They will be key to our success this round. We will be relying on them to step up and win us some valuable ball time.
The focus:
This week we will be focusing on improving our converted turnover rate - it will be key to winning. An area we will be working hard to minimise is our unforced errors. This has been higher than we would like over the past few games and something we can fix through being mentally switched on for the whole game.
Final words:
Three simple words this week.
We. Must. Win.
With Kim Boland.