Around The Grounds

BASKETBALL: Penrith have lost both games in Round 4 of the NBL1 East competition. Penrith’s women’s team were no match for the Central Coast Crusaders, going down 84-63 last Sunday. Star Penrith guard Tahlia Tupaea led her team with 20 points, five assists and five rebounds. Meanwhile, Penrith’s men’s team put in an improved performance but ultimately went down 86-75. Caleb Fetui-Fa’amoe led his team with a whopping 25 points and 16 boards. Both sides will look to bounce back when they take on the Hills Hornets on Good Friday at Hills Basketball Stadium.

NETBALL: Panthers Netball have narrowly defeated North Shore United 56-55 in Round 2 of the Netball NSW Premier League Opens competition. Meanwhile, the Panthers U23s team enjoyed a 51-40 win over United to record back-to-back wins to start the year. Both sides will take on the Central Coast Heart in Round 3.

SUPER NETBALL: Giants Netball continue to remain winless to start the year, putting in a poor fourth quarter performance to go down to the Melbourne Vixens 62-57 in Round 3 of the Super Netball competition. The Giants will continue to search for their maiden win of the season when they battle the Adelaide Thunderbirds this Sunday in SA.

AFL: A rollercoaster affair at Giants Stadium last Saturday evening has seen Carlton walk away with the points in Round 3 of the AFL competition. Both sides traded goals in the first three quarters before the Blues pulled away in the fourth to secure the 74-64 victory. Despite the loss, GWS were boosted by the return of Josh Kelly (30 disposals, one goal) and Lachie Whitfield

(27) from concussion, while Stephen Coniglio (29) continued his superb start to the season. The Giants will hit the road on Easter Sunday to play Essendon at Marvel Stadium.

RUGBY LEAGUE: Round 9 of the NSWRL Junior Representative season took place last weekend with excellent results for Penrith’s SG Ball and Harold Matthews teams. In the SG Ball Cup, Penrith finished second on the ladder after nine rounds with a 42-10 thumping of the Canterbury Bulldogs last weekend. In the Harold Matthews Cup, Penrith were crowned Minor Premiers of the competition following a 52-6 carve up of the Bulldogs. Both teams have qualified for the post-season, with the Finals kicking off next weekend.

SOCCER: A high scoring affair has seen the Western Sydney Wanderers go down to Adelaide United 3-2 at CommBank Stadium. With a top two spot on the line, the Reds and Wanderers were all tied up at half-time. Adelaide then scored two quick goals as the second half got underway to push out to a 3-1 advantage. Western Sydney managed to claw one back in the 60th minute but were unable to get the equaliser in the final 30 minutes of game-time. Recently re-signed Wanderers captain Marcelo was handed a red card towards the end of the match following his involvement in a last-minute fracas. The Wanderers will look to bounce back this Saturday night when they take on Macarthur.

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