Rebels draw with Sparrows

SPARROWS and Rebels played out a 41-41 draw in their round 3 Port Moresby Netball Competition premier grade fixture yesterday at the Rita Flynn Complex.
Sparrows trailed by three points in the first quarter (10-13) but fought back with defenders Courtney Abel and Kilala Owen limiting Rebels shooter Lua Rikis in the second frame.
The half time score saw Sparrows overtunr the deficit to lead 22-19.
Rebels’ midcourt Winnie Mavara and defender Serena Ovia worked over time to give their shooters more opportunities to have a tied score (32-32) at the end of three-quarter time.
The final quarter was nerve wrecking for both teams as they traded goals.
The Rebels led 41-40 with under a minute remaining and Sparrows played long and managed to get it to their shooters who posted the equaliser as time ran out.
“I expected the result to be close so a draw is fair result,” Sparrows coach Julienne Leka-Maliaki said.
“It’s always fun playing Rebels, our games are similar and they always put up a great challenge,” she said.