WANL 2023: Souwest Jets keen to learn from mistakes and find effective combinations ahead of Demons clash

Finding effective connections between teammates is set to become a high-priority task on the Souwest Jets’ agenda as they gear up to host their first home game of the WANL season and bounce back from a tough loss.

The Souwest Jets found themselves back at the drawing board after suffering a 37-goal loss to the East Freo Sharks during their 2023 WANL season opener at the Gold Netball Centre last Friday.

Now the Jets will be looking to bounce back when they host the Southside Demons at the Eaton Recreation Centre on Sunday.

Souwest Jets head coach Cherie Farnan said while last week’s outcome was not what the team wanted, there was plenty of learning curves from the match.

“On our part, new combos and how they worked together under match pressure was good to watch,” she said.

“It was a great game to have first up — the Sharks are going to be the measure for the season.

“Finding the combo that is firing at the right time is always going to be a juggle at the beginning of the season with new personell so we’ll be working on those combinations and communication to get the best processes working effectively.”

While the Jets managed a fast start during the early stages of last week’s match, they found themselves overwhelmed by the Sharks, from strong defence by Shannon Eagland and Jessica Penny, as well as accurate shooting by Larrissa Harrison.

Although the Jets had some solid performances in Brooke Gibson, the returning Ella Eastaugh and club debutants Kate Kimberley and Claire Pickerill, they struggled to get ahead of the Sharks.

The Southside Demons will also be looking to show resilience after they fell short to the Curtin Hamersley Comets 69-53 in their season opener at the Gold Netball Centre.

While the Demons were right with the Comets in a relatively even start to the match, the Comets took charge during the second quarter and held them off to secure the win.

The last time the two sides met was during the 12th round of the 2022 WANL season, where the Demons held off the Jets to secure a 70-45 win.