Match Report Steel v Pulse – Rd 6
May 17, 2026
The Ascot Park Hotel Southern Steel trumped the Te Wānanga o Raukawa Pulse 52-43 in Wellington on Sunday.
Bolting out of the gates with unrivalled intensity, it took the Southerners less than six minutes to rack up a 9-2 buffer, forcing an early timeout from the Pulse to halt the damage.
The reset strategy paid off, the home side closing the gap back to four at the break and sneaking back within one courtesy of a new intensity in the second phase.
Patience in the face of formidable defence was again an asset for Steel, enabling them to navigate an often-stormy midcourt to regain a vital 26-22 advantage at halftime.
A composed Steel emerged from the changing room, fully aware of head coach Wendy Frew’s expectations and intent on delivering the clinical display needed for victory.
With shooter Aliyah Dunn faultless with 100 percent accuracy and goal attack Georgia Heffernan (82 Percent) commanding on attack, the score continued to tick over nicely in the Steel’s favour.
Steel’s resident energiser bunny Carys Stythe continued her sublime form, challenging every chance relentlessly and adding another six gains to her tally. Wing attack Serina Duanakakamakama was equally impressive, tackling her assignment with trademark flair.
Contending with different shooting combinations certainly didn’t faze Stythe.
“They are quite different shooters – one is quite aerial and one’s a holder – so we had to adjust but I think we did it well,” she said post-match.
“Both you just have to move your feet around. One you really have to try and get up with two feet for the up and go back, and one is more about moving your feet around to get around the body. They are very different but same kind of principal in that they both want to shoot at the end of the day so it’s our job to try to stop them from doing that.”
Steel captain Kimiora Poi commended her side’s performance to notch up five wins in a row.
“I’m really happy and each week we’re growing. We probably let them in a little bit when we got a good lead so it’s just a matter of finishing,” she told TVNZ.
“We knew the first part of the game was going to be a grind – everyone says that grind word but it actually was, so we just had to stick at it and know we could do it.”
Dominant shooting helped her team net maximum ANZ Premiership points as they eye a spot in the Finals Series.
“They (Dunn and Heffernan) are doing such a great job in there creating separation and they are both solid options so that makes it harder for the d’s to figure out who they are going to defend so really proud of them,” Poi said.
Pulse co-captain Parris Mason graciously heaped praise on the Steel.
“They came out and they are playing some hella netball at the moment. When they play with the speed they are, and Georgia and Aliyah are just so solid in there, they have got the answers for basically everything at the moment,” she said.
“It was a tough night for us. Obviously, their defence came out extremely strong as well, so they are a tough side and they are playing some really good netball so good for them but obviously another sad loss for us which is a hard one to take.”
A telling third quarter turned the match, the Steel silencing a sold-out crowd at TSB Arena.
The nine-goal difference looked like a comfortable win over the fifth-placed Pulse, but they were hounded by a desperate home side for the full 60 minutes, the hosts coming within two of the Steel but never able to break through in a tightly contested first half.
Dunn starred in the shooting circle, but Poi was a workhorse for her side with a massive 43 feeds, three intercepts and a general nuisance on defence as her team took control of the match in the last 15 minutes of play.
At the other end of the court, Stythe’s long reach proved troublesome while wing Renee Savai’inaea came into her own in the fourth spell.
The two teams met in Round 4 with the Steel winning at home by seven goals and Frew went with what has become a regular starting seven for her side.
In what was a must-win for the Pulse, coach Anna Andrews-Tasola opted for Ine-Mari Venter at shooter despite a strong performance from Khiarna Williams last week.
Experienced links across the court were fast into action for the Steel, polished with their ball movement through court, defensive efforts and timing in the shooting circle – the visitors building an early four-goal lead.
At one end of the court, Dunn was an easy target for her feeders while at the other the Steel defensive unit forced plenty of indecision for their opponents.
With a 9-2 advantage, Andrews-Tasola asked to talk to her charges as the Pulse attempted to claw themselves back into the match.
On the back of a united defensive effort, they closed the gap to four and despite flirting with the held ball rule, went into the first break trailing just 11-15.
There were no changes immediately after the whistle as both teams looked to consolidate on their opening quarter – the Pulse bringing the early pressure in the second spell.
Pulse defender Holly Comyns started to shut down the easy option into Dunn as the southern wheels started to wobble with just two goals difference on the scoreboard – the latter finding some attention from the umpires for offensive penalties.
With neither team able to take the game by the scruff, the Pulse was the first side to turn to its bench with Williams replacing Venter in the shooting circle on the countdown to halftime.
The combination tested the Steel defence, but the hosts went into the main break down 22-26 and opted to switch back to Venter on the resumption of play in the third quarter.
Errors from both teams marred the opening minutes of the spell but it was the Steel who settled first – a couple of key rebounds from Stythe helping the visitors extend their buffer back to eight, prompting the return of Williams to the Pulse line.
An umpire warning to both goal defenders, Parris Mason and Khanye’-Lii Munro-Nonoa, showed a lift in intensity and Williams added a different dynamic into the Pulse shooting circle. But the hosts struggled to find their rhythm on transition from defence onto attack going into the last turn trailing 32-41.
