By Caitlin Greenwood
In front of a roaring RAC Arena crowd of more than 11,800, the West Coast Fever have gone where no club has gone before - claiming their 11th consecutive win to seal the minor premiership and secure the Major Semi Final at home.
It was a complete performance from the green machine, who absorbed early pressure from the GIANTS before pulling away for a dominant 17-goal win.
Fever burst out of the blocks in the opening quarter, with Sunday Aryang setting the tone early through a sharp intercept. The battle under the post was fierce, with Casey Kopua stepping up to challenge Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard, while English stars Fran Williams and Jo Harten went head-to-head at the other end.
Despite Fever’s slick transition and early three-goal lead, the GIANTS stayed in touch, helped along by four super shots, all from the hot hands of Harten.
A tactical timeout helped settle the visitors, and while Fever's defence kept applying pressure, the GIANTS refused to back down.
The second quarter opened with the GIANTS showing greater composure in attack, but relentless defensive pressure from the Fever, forced errors, including a held ball.
A rare turnover from Fowler-Nembhard allowed the visitors to level the scores, prompting a tactical timeout from the home side.
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Kadie-Ann Dehaney was injected into the game for her 100th national league appearance, and her impact was immediate, helping Fever out to a four-goal lead heading into the Power Five.
Jamie-Lee Price and Zoe Cransberg remained locked in a fierce midcourt battle. Price was her typical tenacious self, delivering eight feeds and an intercept in the first half. However, Cransberg was just as influential, racking up 12 goal assists and a deflection, to help drive Fever’s attack.
At times the GIANTS struggled to move the ball cleanly, though Matisse Letherbarrow provided a spark off the bench with crucial super shots to keep her side in the hunt, despite being down by four at halftime.
Fever tightened the screws in the third quarter, continuing to disrupt the GIANTS’ attack. Jo Harten returned under the post, but Fever’s defensive intensity kept GIANTS on the back foot.
Zoe Cransberg was forced off for a Head Injury Assessment following a heavy clash with Jamie-Lee Price, but the change did little to steady the Fever’s run.
With Shanice Beckford having a quieter outing, Olivia Wilkinson was introduced to add fresh energy in the circle.
GIANTS struggled to settle, with unforced errors piling up, a tactical timeout was called, but the gap continued to grow. Fever heading into the final quarter with a 57-44 lead.
The Fever kept rolling in the fourth, with Cransberg cleared following her earlier HIA.
Fowler-Nembhard steadied after some early wobbles, holding strong against the persistent efforts of Kopua.
The home crowd were treated to a debut, as Dehaney made way for Caitlin Brown in defence. It'll be a debut to remember for Brown, who immediately made an impact with a strong rebound off Jo Harten.
For GIANTS, it was Maddie Hay who stood up strong, racking up 19 assists, 36 feeds, a gain and an intercept in a tireless display. But the visitors couldn’t find answers as the unforced errors piled up.
Roared home by a home crowd, the Fever powered to a 17-goal win and with it, claimed the first minor premiership in the club’s history.
