West Coast Fever Lead Melbourne Vixens 1-0 Early in Super Netball Preliminary Final

West Coast Fever took an early 1-0 lead in the Super Netball preliminary final after Romelda Aiken-George scored on the opening centre pass at 7:31 pm on 27 June 2026 at John Cain Arena. Abc reported the Vixens started with Sophie Garbin at goal shooter, Kiera Austin at goal attack, Zara Walters at wing attack, Kate Moloney at centre, Kate Eddy at wing defence, Jo Weston at goal defence and Rudi Ellis at goal keeper.

The Fever fielded the same starting seven as the prior week, with Romelda Aiken-George at goal shooter, Sasha Glasgow at goal attack, Alice Teague-Neeld at wing attack, Zoe Cransberg at centre, Jess Anstiss at wing defence, Fran Williams at goal defence and Kadie-Ann Dehaney at goal keeper.

The 37-year-old Aiken-George leads the league in offensive rebounds, ranks fourth in total goals with 612 and shoots at 85 per cent accuracy. She has won four premierships and holds the record for appearances in the Australian national netball league with 260 caps.

Abc reported Alice Teague-Neeld missed three rounds with a back injury but returned to earn player of the match honours in the minor semifinal with 45 feeds and 29 goal assists.

Kiera Austin leads the competition with 54 two-point super shots. The teams split their two regular-season meetings in 2026, with the Vixens winning 50-44 in Perth in round 7 and the Fever winning 64-55 in Melbourne in round 14. The Vixens won the 2025 grand final 59-58 and the 2024 preliminary final 73-72, both in Melbourne.

The Vixens won their first nine matches of 2026 but have lost five of their past six games. They fell 57-44 to the Thunderbirds in the major semifinal. The Fever defeated the Mavericks 56-52 in the minor semifinal and have won their past three matches.