Simone McKinnis reveals 'turning point' as Vixens eye fairytale ending in Super Netball grand final
It proved the turning point that took the Vixens from strugglers to Super Netball grand finalists, and now they will hope to ride that wave of emotion to glory.
Melbourne will face the West Coast Fever in Saturday's decider at John Cain Arena after mounting an emotional comeback from 10 goals down at the final change to beat the NSW Swifts by one goal last week.
It meant McKinnis's decorated career would stretch into one more game — a tilt at a third national league title.
McKinnis announced after her 200th game in May — a defeat to Sunshine Coast Lightning — that she would be moving on, before later joking her "flat" charges, then sitting 2-4, needed to head to the pub.
Since then, Melbourne has won eight of 10 games to reach their second consecutive decider.
"The turning point was moving on, having that announcement," McKinnis said on Wednesday.
"It was just, 'Alright, that's out there. Let's just go and have fun.'
"I think that was the turning point for us."
McKinnis admitted a third triumph would be particularly special.
"It'd be enormous. It would be brilliant," she said.
"Because I'm just so super proud of how we've got here from where we started this season, and how we've got to this position, and I'm not sure that many people would have seen us in the grand final.
"So, I'm just super proud of the girls."
Defender Kate Eddy started her career as a training partner at the Vixens and, apart from two years at the Swifts, has only played under McKinnis.
She and her teammates, fuelled by the fire of losing last year's grand final to NSW, are trying not to think too much about their coach's last hurrah.
"After the siren goes, I think it'll be lots of emotions and everything as well next week," Eddy said.
"But trying to put out all of my energy and focus into this week, because obviously Simone means the world to all of us and to me as well.
"So, it'll be really hard. But try not to think about that too much."
First, the Vixens need to get the better of the Fever, who have beaten them twice this season, with star goaler Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard averaging 60 goals in those two games.
Eddy stressed the Vixens' full-court defence needed to stop the ball getting to Fowler-Nembhard, while McKinnis wants her charges switched on early.
"You're never out of the contest until the whistle is gone and the final siren's gone. It's never over," McKinnis said.
"But … you can't afford to be giving a team like Fever that sort of head start.
"The important part for us is being able to put that pressure on and show our intent and purpose right from the first whistle."
AAP
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"Tough ask, but I believe we can do it." Fever coach Dan Ryan said his team's preparation had been seamless as they sat back and watched the Vixens claw their way from a 10-goal three-quarter time deficit to oust the NSW Swifts in the preliminary final. The Perth outfit beat the Vixens in the final round of the season by 11 goals with Fowler-Nembhard slotting a stunning 60 goals with her only blemish missing two long-range super shots. But Ryan said they were far from a one-player team. "To win this competition every single player needs to pull their weight and do their role and every role is slightly different and we've got a team of 10 that we have great confidence to turn to at any point in time," he said. "Jhaniele is obviously a focal point for us, and she's always a focal point in opposition game plans as well, but we really back in every position on the court to bring out the best in each other and support each other on that court. "It's been a really good two-week build to the game ... there's a great energy amongst the group and confidence and excitement to get out there and hopefully play some great netball." Retiring coach Simone McKinnis says nothing short of the Melbourne Vixens' best will be enough to stop the West Coast Fever juggernaut in Saturday's Super Netball grand final. The Vixens are determined to send McKinnis, stepping down after 13 years at the helm, out as a winner but face a mighty task in toppling the Fever, who are on a 13-game winning streak. In the two clashes through the season Melbourne haven't come close, but after fighting their way from fourth to a spot in the decider at a sold-out Rod Laver Arena, believe they can cause a boilover against the runaway minor premiers. The Vixens fortuitously have a home grand final thanks to Netball Australia selling off the match to the highest bidder, which the Victorian government won last September. The Vixens suffered a two-goal loss in last year's grand final in Adelaide against the Thunderbirds, with their last title coming win a victory against the Fever in 2020, when the title showdown was played in a Queensland hub due to COVID-19. McKinnis acknowledged it would be tough but not impossible to stop the Fever, who won their last grand final meeting in 2022, and in particular Jamaican sharp-shooter Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard. They have been boosted by the return of star wing attack Hannah Mundy, who has been sidelined for more than a month with a foot injury but got the green light this week. "We have to be at our absolute best, individually and collectively as a team and I think that anything bar that is not going to cut it," said McKinnis, a former Diamonds wing defence. "We have to have real clarity and intention about what we're doing out there, we have to put them under as much pressure as we can and we have to go for it back ourselves in attack. "Tough ask, but I believe we can do it." Fever coach Dan Ryan said his team's preparation had been seamless as they sat back and watched the Vixens claw their way from a 10-goal three-quarter time deficit to oust the NSW Swifts in the preliminary final. The Perth outfit beat the Vixens in the final round of the season by 11 goals with Fowler-Nembhard slotting a stunning 60 goals with her only blemish missing two long-range super shots. But Ryan said they were far from a one-player team. "To win this competition every single player needs to pull their weight and do their role and every role is slightly different and we've got a team of 10 that we have great confidence to turn to at any point in time," he said. "Jhaniele is obviously a focal point for us, and she's always a focal point in opposition game plans as well, but we really back in every position on the court to bring out the best in each other and support each other on that court. "It's been a really good two-week build to the game ... there's a great energy amongst the group and confidence and excitement to get out there and hopefully play some great netball."
