Tasmanian Magpies have celebrated a welcome homecoming to the Silverdome in six days time with back-to-back away wins against one of their main title threats.
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The impressive series of four-goal wins on Saturday and Sunday over Netball NSW Waratahs has ensured their return double-header is not just an idle appearance.
The trip back onto a Tasmanian court for the first time in 14 months could also not come at a better time.
Launceston-raised quartet Kelsie Rainbow, Maddie Carter, Shelby Miller and Danni Pickett will headline a form side that has won seven out of its eight matches.
“I think it’s going to be awesome,” Pickett said.
“Hopefully we can get a really big home crowd and get a few of the [Launceston] girls out on the court.
“For us to be all playing together is really exciting and bringing in those Melbourne girls in as well.
“We’re a really close, tight knit team at the moment.
“You can’t really tell the difference now when there is a Tassie-based player or one from Melbourne on the court at the moment – we’re just gelling so well together.”
The Tasmanians have proven any doubters wrong since a narrow first-up loss to defending champions Western Sting and on the back of an ordinary finish to last season.
So to prove Saturday’s win was no fluke, the visitors did it again in a high-scoring 66-62 finish against the stunned NSW Swifts-feeder team.
Jane Cook, who was a late signing from Adelaide, again proved her worth with a further 56 goals from 60 shots.
“We’re really, really happy to come away with the results this weekend,” Pickett said.
“They really brought it and challenged us in both games.
“It never really died down, but we were really happy we could contain ourselves and keep our composure because they were both so close.”
The Magpies set the early running on Sunday with a 21-16 break at quarter-time before the five-goal lead turned into a two-goal deficit.
But pressure on the Waratahs that led to turnovers changed the complexion of the third and the match.
A 23-12 block set up a nine-goal lead heading into the last quarter that never was seriously threatened.
“Our attackers and defenders played really well, but the pressure that we put them under when they were coming back at us was probably the main thing that stood out,” Pickett said.
“Even though we were losing a couple of balls here and there, our defensive pressure all the way down the court was unreal. We just kept building and building that pressure and it was forcing the mistakes on their behalf.”
Pickett is now expecting to continue the momentum against Queensland Fusion.
“From that first loss in that first weekend, we really haven’t looked back,” she said.
“So to be in the type of form we’re in at the moment going into the games. We know Queensland is going to be a tough team and potentially another finals team.
“If we can build on what we’ve produced, I think we can get two good results.”