Southern Steel to take on competition favorites in season opener
"There’s still plenty of things to work on but there is a whole lot of positives that we’ve been able to see in the last couple of weeks of [preseason] match play."
D-day, when the rubber hits the road, a stake in the ground, chose your cliché.
We are about to get a true idea as to where the Ascot Park Hotel Southern Steel is at in 2023.
The Steel will open its 2023 ANZ Premiership campaign on Saturday night against the Northern Mystics in Auckland.
It follows an extensive preseason campaign which included two games in Invercargill against the NSW Swifts, two games against the Tactix in Timaru, and the Central Pulse before four games in Otaki against other ANZ Premiership teams.
The Steel won three of the four games in Otaki. That followed the devastating news the star shooter George Fisher would miss the entire season because of a knee injury.
Steel coach Reinga Bloxham is pleased with what she has seen from the team in preseason and how the group responded to the big loss of Fisher.
“I am pleased with where we are at. There’s still plenty of things to work on but there is a whole lot of positives that we’ve been able to see in the last couple of weeks of [preseason] match play,” Bloxham said.
“I think that’s probably been one of things I’ve been the most proud of, is the ability of everyone else around them to step up, know what their role is within structures and get out on the court and execute.
“We talk about it a lot, know what your job is, knowing what your role is. But to be able to see them get out there and do it is something both Jo [Morrison] and I were both proud of.”
The Steel will be provided a decent first test given it’s taking on the competition favorites the Mystics in round one of the competition.
The TAB has the Mystics $2.75 hot favorites to win the competition and the Steel at the longest odds of the six teams at $21.
In terms of head-to-head for Saturday night’s opener the Mystics start $1.18 favorites with the Steel at $4.25.
The first centre pass for Saturday night’s game is scheduled for 7.15pm.