Winning comeback for Stars in season opener

The Robinhood Stars put their disjointed preparations behind them to clinch a satisfying 57-52 win over the Trident Homes Tactix in Christchurch on Sunday.

The come-from-behind five-goal victory signaled an impressive start to the season for Kiri Wills’ Auckland side after their opening round match was postponed due to Covid cases in the opposing team.

Waiting until late in the third quarter to make their move, the Stars defensive and attacking units grew with confidence, and they hit the lead with four minutes remaining in the third quarter displaying an impressive fighting spirit.

Stars defender Anna Harrison, who began playing in the national league for the Otago Rebels an astounding 20 years ago, was on court in fierce form partnering Elle Temu in defence.

Harrison began the game at goal keep, but switched out to goal defence from the second quarter in an effort to blunt the Tactix attacking effort. The veteran defender came into the game with a dramatic intercept in the third quarter, putting her body on the line as she flew off the side of the court.

The Stars made some uncharacteristic errors as they took some time to settle into the game. Centre Mila Reuelu-Buchanan was on the ball from the start and worked to inspire her team-mates with superb bullet passes on attack and determination in defence.

Maia Wilson and Jamie Hume grew in confidence as the game progressed in the Stars shooting end, benefitting from the sublime feeding skills of Reuelu-Buchanan and wing attack Gina Crampton.

An intercept from Stars wing defence Holly Fowler helped build some belief in the Stars as they mustered a comeback to tie the game at half-time. Fowler struck again in the last quarter ensuring valuable possession in the tense final stanza.

The Tactix sped out of the blocks in the first quarter with midcourters Kimiora Poi and Samon Nathan smoothly delivering the ball to their target shooter Ellie Bird. The 1.96m goal shoot, Bird, was available in strong shooting positions and was accurate under the post as the Tactix built a solid five goal lead at the first quarter break.

Another feature of the Tactix side was the shooter-to-shooter interplay between Te Paea Selby-Rickit and Bird.

There was one change in the Tactix’s defensive combination with Kelera Nawai-Caucau coming onto the court at the start of the third quarter. Nawai, who was in Wellington colours last season, replaced Kate Lloyd who partnered Karin Burger in the first half, and helped to keep the Stars shooters rather quiet.

The Tactix, coming off a loss to the Steel in the opening round, were without their coach Marianne Delaney-Hoshek who was forced into isolation for Covid-19 after a household contact tested positive. Assistant coach Tania Hoffman was standing in on the day for the Cantabrians, with Silver Ferns legend Donna Wilkins assisting on the Tactix coaching bench.

This was the first ANZ Premiership match to be played at Cowles Stadium in Christchurch, with the historic main court becoming the 18th venue to host a national league match since 2017.

The venue was last used for a national league match in 2001 between the Flames and Shakers. The Flames won that match 57-55, a match that featured players like Belinda Colling, Marg Foster and Vilimania Davu for the Flames and Irene van Dyk, Jodi Brown and Debbie Fuller for the Shakers.