Z Focused on D Ahead of Adelaide Encounter

The JCU Fire dishing out capital punishment in the opening round of the season stunned some pundits, but not the players themselves. Zitina Akouso expected Townsville to make a strong start.

“I wasn’t surprised at all. I think we had a really good off season and everyone was locked in and everyone has bought into the system that Shannon is building.”

There was a drop off in intensity after an explosive first quarter killed the contest off early. While the centre would love lightning to strike twice, a tighter tussle is anticipated, against and Adelaide side determined to bounce back from a loss to the Flyers.

“We’re still focusing on a lot of what we do, we’re not to worried about what they’re doing, and just making sure that we sharpen up the things we need to.”

She’s adamant our women will be faster at flicking the switch from offence to defence.

“Yeah there were some patches where the defensive transition wasn’t there but we’ve gone away done some film and we’ve been working on it all week.”

JCU Fire Coach Shannon Seebohm hopes his captain can keep Steph Talbot quiet again after the Opal’s impact was limited, last time she travelled to Townsville.

“Oh I’m sure it’ll be a team effort but as we know Lauren Nicholson is one of the best defenders and last time Talbot was here Loz held her to 1 from 11 shooting or something like that. But you know Steph’s a fantastic player and if you let her get going, she’s going to have a big game.”

He’s confident the hosts won’t be beaten on effort, if they play as they train.

“In all of my time here, so far, it’s been the most competitive I’ve seen the practice sessions, in terms of competing and just that desire to win.”

Tomorrow night’s tip off at the Fire Pit is at 7pm. Tickets are available to purchase. Get behind the JCU Fire as the side shoots for successive wins!