Penrith 2s stormed to a 52-36 victory on Tuesday evening as they faced off with Division II comrades, Mavericks Netball. The application of handicaps in this Summer League dealt Penrith 2s a four-goal deficit before the first whistle blew, but this was quashed in the opening quarter, thanks to a strong defensive performance and solid shooting.
The first half saw Penrith move steadily away, putting ever more distance between them and Mavericks, who barely saw the ball in their goal circle. Whilst Penrith 2s put away a total of 14 goals in the first half, Mavericks scored five. There were some notable errors on Penrith’s part though. A handful of footwork and obstruction calls peppered the two starting quarters which needed to be addressed and noted for future matches.
The third quarter saw two fresh faces leave the subs bench and take to the court, which clearly gave the team a lift. They handed their opponents a tough hand and staved off any and all attempts by Mavericks to take even a single goal. Penrith scored 12 in this same timeframe.
The fourth quarter was more sedate across the board which may have helped Mavericks take the 6-7 quarter win. Clawing back this one goal made very little difference to the rift that Penrith 2s had already developed in the previous three quarters, however, and the game ended on 52-36.
Without factoring in the handicaps of 20 and 24 given to Penrith 2s and Mavericks respectively, this game would have finished 32-12 with Penrith as resounding victors. The whole team should be very proud of their achievements tonight!
Congratulations are extended to the Players of the Match, Kirsty Yates (Penrith 2) and Emma (Mavericks), as well as thanks to the umpires for the evening.
Penrith 2 will be on court again on Tuesday 14th June when they face Div II winners, Stewartry in round four of the league. Their match will be preceded by Penrith 1s’ second match where they’ll take on Harraby 1s.
