For the second time in 10 days, Jacks OPD blew away Waimea Prices Ahurei at Saxton Stadium, winning Saturday’s Nelson premier netball final 61-39.
Jacks took the lead halfway through the opening quarter and, as turnovers crept into the defending champions' game, they opened up a 16-9 advantage by the first break.
Prices goal attack Chelsea Reed was replaced by Kate Hand, but Jacks continued to build the buffer and was up by 11 goals early in the second quarter.
Despite playing their second game in three days, almost predictably two-time champions Prices fought back and reduced the margin to four, only for Jacks sharpshooter Harriet Ogilvie to nail a buzzer beater.
The champs sat goal shoot Shar Lowe for the start of the third quarter, but the match was effectively decided in that period as a polished Jacks team limited Prices to just four goals, with twice as many turnovers, and the lead rocketed to 18.
The Drummonds, Jess and Charlotte, distant relations by marriage, ruled the midcourt while Harriet and Hannah Dawson also worked well together in the shooting circle.
Juanita Thomson, who didn’t play last week, subbed on as goalkeeper in the second half and made an immediate impact, which highlighted the depth in the Jacks side.
With the outcome evident so early, both benches were emptied with five and a half minutes to go bringing a cheer from the crowd.
Jacks, which had overwhelmed Prices by 21 goals in their last encounter, stretched the margin to 61-35 today, before conceding the last four goals.
Winning coach Robyn Leonard was proud of her team’s all-round effort but never thought it would be such a one-sided scoreline.
“It is really good that you can have a squad where you can put lots of people on. We just stuck to our processes and did what knew we could do well. It was great. It is always a battle with Prices,” says the longtime mentor.
