Netball
Justin Chadwick 6y

Fever bracing for Magpies grudge match

Netball

West Coast Fever coach Stacey Marinkovich has laughed at talk the clash with Collingwood is a grudge match but expects Saturday's Super Netball game will be a physical encounter.

The Magpies poached three of Fever's best players when the competition was launched at the end of 2016, with Ash Brazill, April Brandley and Shae Brown defecting.

But the tension between the two sides didn't truly bubble over until round two this season, when the Fever recorded a 68-57 win in a feisty contest.

Fever fans hit social media after the game to criticise some Magpies players for not shaking hands with their opponents.

Magpies skipper Madi Robinson denied there had been any missed handshakes but offered an apology to the Fever for some actions that took place.

The teams will lock horns again on Saturday night at Margaret Court Arena in what's shaping as an intriguing tussle.

Marinkovich said the growing banter between rival players and clubs in Super Netball was something to be embraced and her players were preparing for a physical display from the Magpies.

"It's quite funny because when they were saying it's a grudge match, I was like, 'Well, the players have left the club quite a while ago, why is it a grudge match?'," Marinkovich said.

"But then I remembered the incidents that happened earlier this year.

"I don't think it was anything sinister or really out of the spirit of the game. It's more just what happens in sport. I think the girls have certainly moved on from it.

"I think it was played up more in the media."

Collingwood have won just two of their eight games this season and are in desperate need of a win to keep their finals hopes flickering.

Fever (6-2) are on top of the ladder and aim to post their first win in Melbourne since 2010.

Saturday will mark Marinkovich's 50th match in charge of the Fever.

The 37-year-old has been the Fever's longest and most successful coach, and she would love nothing more than to guide the club to title success this season.

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