Thunderbirds down Pulse - Round 1

The Adelaide Thunderbirds got the better of the Central Pulse on Sunday afternoon, 49-42 after a tough and gruelling battle.

Pre season a lot of hype and expectation was on the Pulse after they had probably done the biggest recruiting during the off season.

The first quarter saw the Pulse take an early lead up by 2 after solid shooting by Caitlin Thwaites and Donna Wilkins. At times there was some much needed patience by the Pulse attack and it was paying dividends.

Katrina Grant and Te-Huinga Reo Selby-Rickett were containing the dynamic duo of Carla Borrego and Erin Bell, with Bell only producing 33% shooting in the first quarter. 

The second quarter saw the Thunderbirds grab the lead back and pushed on to a 2 goal lead heading into the 2^nd half. Waddington was showing why coach Jane Woodlands-Thompson gave her the starting WA position over previous starter Emily Beaton. The combination with Australian stalwart Natalie von Bertouch was causing havoc for the Pulse defenders, Lees and Wiffen needed to work harder at keeping the feeders off the circle as it was making life a bit to easy for the Thunderbird attackers.

The 3^rd quarter, or as its commonly known as the championship quarter lived up to its status with the Thunderbirds outscoring the Pulse 13 goals to 5.

The attacking drive was lacking from the Pulse and the frustration that comes with not being able to score quickly was evident.

Leota, Wilkins and Thwaites combined for 18 out of the Pulse 23 turnovers, which will be a slight cause for concern for Robyn Broughton going forward but is certainly easily fixed.

The final quarter had all the noise and intensity of a playoff match with Donna Wilkins stepping up to the plate and shooting the house down. She finished with 100% statistics with Thwaites contributing a healthy 82%.

Verdict

- Overall the Pulse will definitely continue to cause a few teams havoc over the rest of the competition and with the imminent return of Joline Henry, there are a lot of positives.

- The Thunderbirds look like they will certainly be pushing for a top 4 finish again this season and could well be the first team to win a 2^nd title.

- Katrina Grant would have been one of my standout Pulse players. With 2 rebounds, 2 intercepts, 3 deflectios, 12 penalties and 1 turnover. Captain leading from the front.

Game stats

Shooting - Pulse

C THWAITES - 23/28 - 82%

D WILKINS - 19/19 - 100%

Shooting - Thunderbirds

C BORREGO - 28/30 - 93%

E BELL - 80%