ERNA Hawks have taken the title of 2019 Netball NSW Premier League Opens champions after beating Minor Premiers Central Coast Heart in a dominant Grand Final performance at Netball Central in Sydney Olympic Park on Wednesday night.
ERNA Hawks came into the game with a huge amount of confidence after a whopping 77-42 win over GWS Fury in the Preliminary Final and it was too much for last year’s champions Heart to put a lid on.
Two early intercepts by Sophie Halpin opened up an early lead for the Hawks and with five minutes to go in the first quarter they were ahead by six. From there they kept steamrolling and controlled the rest of the quarter, finishing it with 17-10 in front.
Heart were nervous and slow to release the ball, giving their opposition plenty of opportunity to pounce and win the ball back. The Central Coast side failed to make a connection in their attack end and they suffered for it with Hawks pulling ahead by 13 goals (36-23) by half time.
Every player on the Hawks side stepped up their defensive efforts, creating turnovers all over the court and limiting Heart to score just seven goals in the third quarter.
The nail in the coffin for Heart was when the Hawks brought on five of their bench players midway through the final term, and the Central Coast team could do almost nothing to secure a comeback.
They did, however, match the intensity of the Hawks and stem the momentum of their opponents in parts but it was too little, too late. By the final whistle, Hawks had taken the win and secured their 2019 Champions title with a 24-goal victory, 68-44.
Starting Teams
HEART | GS Maddie Taylor, GA Tarsha Hawley, WA Kristen Kessler, C Alicia Walsh, WD Dakota Thomas, GD Laura Roger, GK Leanne Greventiz
HAWKS | GS Alison Miller, GA Keira Austin, WA Claire O’Brien, C Georgia Marshall, WD Sophie Halpin, GD Nicole Styles, GK Jessica Grant (Calderara)
Quarter by quarter scores
HEART | Q1: 10, Q2: 23 (13), Q3: 30 (7), Q4: 44 (14)
HAWKS | Q1: 17, Q2: 36 (19), Q3: 53 (17), Q4: 68 (15)