by Holly Slattery
Kalei Brighton has collected her second Players’ Player award of the Ruby Series after her defence helped prevent a bigger mauling from the top-of-the-table Tigers.
Round 14 headed to the regions and the Bull Sharks were determined to return from Ipswich with a much needed third win of the season.
Instead the competition heavyweights proved too polished in attack and prevailed 56-36.
Despite the loss to the Tigers, Brighton said hard work behind the scenes is paying off.
“We’ve got a whole new lot of trust in each other. In the earlier games we were quite hesitant with the ball but now we just let it go and I think the support we have around each other has improved.
“We’re really positive with each other and really want the best for the team.”
Brighton said the Bond side was competitive but not sufficiently responsive to the action.
“We had a good defensive game, not just from our defensive end but throughout the whole court.
“But when we did get those turnovers or the forced ball we just weren’t able to capitalise on that opportunity and make it into our conversion.
“We did have some good passages of play and even though we went down, we didn’t let them keep getting further out of our grip.”
Last Tuesday night the Bull Sharks fell to the Wildcats by just four points but were strong contenders from the first whistle.
Queensland representative Lily Philips led the charge by bringing high energy to the home court and contributed a massive 50 percent of the Bull Sharks’ turnover gains.
The Bull Sharks will use the week to prepare for a double-header at the Nissan Arena against the USQ Jets and the Cougars this weekend.