The Good Oil Tactix’ fans continue to prove they are some of the best in the country, cheering on their team to their first ANZ Premiership win of the season.
The Tactix beat the Magic in front of the largest ANZ Premiership crowd so far this year, netting a 63-59 win at Christchurch Arena on Sunday and the team will be hoping there will be more in the stands to back red-and-black for a key re-match against the Mystics on Monday, 17 May.
Head coach Marianne Delaney-Hoshek said it was good to get the victory for themselves and for their fans.
“I think when it gets close like that the home crowd can certainly give us that lift,” she said.
“You can really hear them when the defence gets the ball and it just builds from there.
“We could see the red-and-black in the crowd and it’s such a positive feeling.”
It’s not the first time the loyal Tactix fans have set Premiership records, turning up to produce the biggest crowd in league history last year, and recent studies have backed the theory of the benefits of home support.
University of Canterbury (UC) sports psychology lecturer Dr Brad Miles told Stuff reporters that players’ familiarity with their local venue and having less travel-related fatigue were factors in playing at home.
He told Stuff that home fans could be “motivating and energising” for the team.
Delaney-Hoshek agreed and said her team reacted when backed by their home crowd with Sunday’s win over the Magic a timely confidence boost ahead of their second home match of the season, against the Mystics next Monday – a team they lost to by just one goal in Round 3.
It was a tense final quarter for the Tactix against the Magic but the head coach believed their experience played a key role in the four-goal win.
“I think we nailed the crucial moments which was a real positive for us tonight,” Delaney-Hoshek said.
The Tactix also showed plenty of stamina to finish the third and fourth quarters strongly, keeping them in the game.
“I think that shows the engine of this Tactix side, our fitness which we’ve really worked on and how that pays off when it matters,” she said.
