The Melbourne Vixens have squashed Kim Ravallion’s hopes of a fairytale end to her illustrious netball career as they ran out ten point victors over the retiring captain’s embattled Queensland Firebirds.
An emotional Ravaillion struggled for words post match, but said, “Finishing here in front of the incredible crowd is surreal. I’ve played with some bloody incredible players, but finishing here, it means everything.”
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With their 62 to 52 win, the Vixens have clawed their way back into Super Netball minor premiership contention, but will have an anxious wait for other results as they could still finish anywhere between first and third.
If the Thunderbirds win tomorrow’s match against the Sunshine Coast Lightning, they bump Vixens to second, while Fever can also muscle their way higher if they win their match against the Mavericks by 22 or more.
For the first time since Round 3, the Vixens had their full contracted ten available for the match.
For most teams, a revolving door of injuries would cause disruption as players moved in and out of the game-day squad.
But for the Vixens, it was business as usual as each reintroduced team member slotted in effortlessly.
Vixens signalled their premiership intentions early as they stormed their way to a six-point lead within the first five minutes of play.
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Unsurprisingly the message to the Firebirds from co-coach, Rose Jencke, was to work harder. While their intensity lifted, they still trailed the Vixens by two, heading into the first break. By the end of the third term, the Vixens held a handy ten point lead which proved too much for the Firebirds to hunt down.
While there were key match-ups all across the court, one of the most tantalising was between Vixen Jo Weston and Firebird, Lara Dunkley.
The physicality between the former teammates was a sight to behold with Dunkley sent sprawling early in the second quarter. However, Weston’s long reach did little to squash Dunkley’s connection to her shooters, as she finished with 33 feeds including 16 goal assists.
The injury to Dunkley made way for Ravallion to enter the match to riotous applause from the sold out Nissan Arena crowd. Ravallion’s combined 20-minute in the second and fourth quarter earned her three goal assists and a pick up.
Shooting accuracy has been a sticking point for the Firebirds all season with today’s match no different.
At half time their percentage was at a lowly 70%.
Donnell Wallam was their top scorer at 41 from 54 for 76 per cent.
There was no such issue down the Vixens shooting end, with Diamond duo Kiera Austin and Sophie Garbin combining for an impressive 91 per cent for the match.
Austin finished with MVP honours, scoring 24 from 29.
The Firebirds’ best hope is to remain in sixth place if the Sydney Derby results go their way. They will be hoping for a higher finish next season as the hunt for their new head coach continues.
RAV RETIRES
Today’s match was the last Super Netball match for Kim Ravallion, who, earlier in the week, announced she was ‘graduating’ into the next phase of her life.
The Firebirds’ captain is a two-time premiership winner, a multi-Commonwealth Games medallist and a World Cup champion.
Ravallion famously started her professional netball career at 19 years of age, in the green and gold, before stepping onto a national level court.
She played 156 national league matches and represented Australia 60 times.
Speaking to the media before the match, Ravallion was reflecting on her Firebirds journey. “I’ve had a week to sit back and reflect,” she said.
“There’s been some incredible moments in the purple dress. The first four years were incredible, and as soon as I left, I wanted to come back, so to be finishing here in front of the fans and my family is so special.”
Source Agencies
