The final act in an unprecedented netball week hijacked by boardroom manoeuvring and threats of retaliatory disruption by the players' association will be played out on the court in Sydney on Sunday afternoon. Now, there's a quaint concept: writing and talking about the game, not its politics.
Or, in this case, games – a double-header involving three of the top four Super Netball teams, including both Victorian sides. Collingwood's Magpies sneaked into the leading quartet after round eight despite not yet winning consecutive games, while the Melbourne Vixens have vaulted into strong premiership contention through a fine pre-bye stretch of five successive victories.
Yet the Vixens' traditional bogy team awaits at Qudos Bank Arena – the NSW Swifts, whom they have beaten just six times in 21 attempts, and drew 59-59 with at home in round three despite leading for all but the final seconds. Coming a week after their only loss for the season, against the Lightning on the Sunshine Coast, that was, nevertheless, the last point the surging second-placed Vixens have dropped. Their cause will be aided this time by the Swifts' loss of star midcourter Paige Hadley to a knee injury.
"You don't want to have a draw, but by the same token we learnt a fair bit in those early matches, and even the Lightning one," said Vixens coach Simone McKinnis, whose name is on the Sargeant-McKinnis Cup contested annually by two of the Australian netball's power clubs. "I'm happy with where we're at, but it's going be really, really important from here that we're hitting that level right from the word go.
"I actually really like the Swifts; I think they're a really good team, and admire the way they're playing their netball, and everybody knows that they're much better than the one win that's on the ladder. They're just a quality team and I think perhaps in some ways we do play a similar sort of game. It's going to be a tough one for us, but at the same time it's a good one, because nothing but putting out really good quality netball is going to get us the win. And we want the win."
And thus to continue what has been started, although McKinnis has been determined that the week's board kerfuffle would not become a distraction, as well as adamant that the benefits of having a much-needed rest after a demanding stretch leading into Easter outweigh any concern about a potential loss of momentum. "They'd been working really, really hard. They needed the break, so I was happy for them to have that," she said.
Most pleasing for the coach in the first eight weeks has been the team unity, both on and off court, and a steady rise in training intensity that was most compelling before the round eight monstering of the Thunderbirds in Adelaide. "Every time they hit the court they're just training at a super level, and it's driven from themselves, from within. It's not me saying, 'Come on, come on, come on.' They're just doing it."
While work was done during the break on improving the full-court defence, there has been much else to like. Consistency across the 60 minutes? Tick. Scoring? Ditto, considering a league-high 60-goal average at 88 per cent accuracy for the dynamic Kumwenda-Philip pairing. Fearlessness has been a theme all season, with mistakes tolerated more than hesitancy or playing it safe.
Along with such strong form, predictably, has come the higher regard of all those who expected the Magpies – who, at 4-4, face the ladder-leading Giants in Sunday's first match – would be the leading Victorian team. Not so far, but not that McKinnis is bothered, either way.
"We're really happy with where we're at, and I think we're in a good position heading into the back end of the season, but there's a whole lot of netball and tough matches ahead," she said. "I guess we're just really about ourselves and not fussed about all that's being talked about outside. We just know we've got to keep working hard and putting it out there on court."