Trident Homes Tactix defender Karin Burger knows a win over the Stars on Sunday will not only secure them the Hanmer Springs Trophy but go a long way in helping them to determine their own ANZ Premiership destiny.
It is another milestone weekend for the Tactix with Burger set to play her 100th national league game alongside goal attack Te Paea Selby-Rickit who will mark her 150th national league match.
But it is the run to the play-offs that will bring most of the anticipation heading into the Round 10 match against the Stars at Christchurch Arena on Sunday afternoon.
Just three rounds remain in the regular season, and two losses last weekend has put the Tactix into must-win territory if they are to control their Finals Series fate.
They are sitting just outside the top three, two points below the Stars, but Burger remains confident the Tactix have the tools in their kit to ensure they extend their season.
She admits morale was “a bit down” following the double-header defeats but they had been working hard at training this week to tweak some areas of their game.
“I think it’s a mixture of us taking from the weekend what we need to but also dumping it at the same time,” she said. “There’s things that we need to work on, we acknowledge that, but it’s knowing that we’re still in it, we can still do this.”
Burger said they had had some tough conversations at training, but it was also important they “stayed positive” in what was one of the closest Premiership competitions in history.
Only six points separate the top four teams with the Mystics and Pulse sitting at the top on 27 points each while the Stars have 23 points and the Tactix 21 – both the Mystics and Tactix having played one game less than the Pulse and Stars.
“I think the competition this year is amazing – to know that every single game is going to determine what the results are going to be at the end,” Burger said. “It’s pretty great to have this leading into the World Cup as well. Everybody is trying to put their hands up and no game is an easy game. You never know what to expect coming in which makes it very exciting as well.”
Missing her defensive partner, Jane Watson, last weekend was also a massive blow and coach Marianne Delaney-Hoshek said they were hopeful of having her back in action this weekend but would be directed by the medical team.
“It’s one of those things where it’s just day to day at the moment,” she said.
It is a similar mantra for the team and the position they find themselves in with their focus on just one game at a time, their most important the match-up with the Stars this weekend.
“It’s not over yet and we’ve still got games we’ve got to win to ensure we can control our outcome,” Delaney-Hoshek said.
She was looking forward to the challenge against the Stars with both teams having taken a scalp in their two meetings to date.
“I think we sort of know their style and they know ours. It’s one apiece and it’s going to be a good game,” she said.
“We’ve got to pick ourselves up now, but we’ll have our home crowd behind us which is always such a lift for the team.”
- The Trident Homes Tactix meet the Stars at Christchurch Arena on Sunday at 4pm, live on Sky TV
