Reigning premiers West Coast Fever produced a devastating four-quarter performance to score a lopsided 80-53 victory over the Collingwood Magpies on Sunday to maintain their perfect start to the new season.
After kicking off their championship defence with two dramatic one-goal victories, West Coast ensured there would be no late drama at RAC Arena in Perth by thoroughly outclassing the Magpies to make it three straight seasons with wins in their opening three games.
West Coast’s Jhaniele Fowler again starred for the Fever in their win over the Magpies.Credit:Getty Images
Having converted all 114 shot attempts in the Fever’s opening two games, record-setting goal shooter Jhaniele Fowler chalked up another milestone by extending her streak by another 32 goals before registering her first missed shot of the year early in the third quarter.
Fowler’s run of 146 straight makes set a new benchmark for consecutive goals without a miss in a single season, previously held by Northern Mystics shooter Cathrine Tuivaiti (139 goals) during the ANZ Championships era.
The Jamaican international and winner of five straight league MVP awards closed the match with 51 goals from 52 attempts, while Sasha Glasgow added 10 two-point Super shots.
But the Fever’s success was generated at the defensive end with Courtney Bruce, Sunday Aryang and Jess Anstiss responsible for 11 gains in the first half, West Coast surging ahead 35-18 before heading to the main break with a 13-goal advantage.
Kimberley Jenner looks to pass for the Fever.Credit:Getty Images
“We kind of did our homework and thought these girls are going to come out firing, as everyone does every round, but I thought we really stepped it up,” Fever midcourter Verity Simmons said. “The pace was out there tonight and big defence came from the girls.”
Simmons (35 feeds, 23 assists) credited her defensive group for laying the platform for her to succeed against an in-form Magpies midcourt.
Coming off a controversial loss in last week’s local derby against Melbourne Vixens, Collingwood’s quest to score their first win over the Fever since 2019 was dealt an early blow when the home side went on an 8-1 run to set up an 18-13 buffer after one quarter.
West Coast then blunted Collingwood’s attack in the second period, disrupting numerous centre passes and denying entry into the goal circle to hold the Magpies to 11 goals for the quarter, and 65 per cent shooting in the first half, to lead 37-24.
In the later match, Melbourne Vixens held their composure during a tense final quarter to grind out a hard-fought 62-57 victory over the Giants and keep the Sydneysiders winless after three rounds.
With scores tied at 57-57 entering the last five minutes, the Vixens stayed strong to shut out the Giants and secure their second win of the season.
The Vixens’ Mwai Kumwenda takes a shot against the Giants.Credit:Getty Images
The result caps an eventful start to the campaign for the Vixens with last season’s grand finalists losing a one-goal thriller to the Fever in round one before they were the beneficiaries of an officiating error in a dramatic comeback victory over cross-town rivals Collingwood.
Captain Liz Watson said Melbourne’s focus on retaining possession for long stretches during training paid dividends against the Giants in crunch time.
“Just look at our last two games, there were probably opportunities when we could have [held the ball] but we want to keep attacking and keep scoring,” Watson told Fox Sports.
“I think we were really smart in the end to score when we needed to score and held the ball when we needed to.″
Mwai Kumwenda finished with 39 goals from 42 attempts for the Vixens and Keira Austin 13 from 15.
