This wasn't the preliminary final anyone was picking.
Neither the Magic nor the Firebirds were expected to feature in this weekend's sudden-death match, but for very different reasons.
Having only just scraped into the playoffs after dropping four of their last five matches of the regular season, last weekend's minor semifinal was expected to be the extent of the Magic's involvement in the 2014 finals.
The Firebirds, meanwhile, were considered the form team of the top four after steamrolling their way into second position on the ladder on the back of six straight wins. With the Vixens having a poor outing against the Steel in their final round match, the Firebirds were considered a strong chance of snatching away the grand final hosting rights from the Melbourne side in last Monday's major semifinal.
But in keeping with the unpredictable nature of the 2014 competition, both results went against expectations.
After trailing the NSW Swifts for most of the match, the Magic produced a dramatic last-gasp win in their sudden-death semifinal in Sydney, while the Firebirds blew their chance at hosting the grand final after an uncharacteristically error-ridden performance against the Vixens.
And so, the Firebirds and Magic will battle it out in Brisbane on Monday night for the right to take on the Vixens in the title decider.
The Firebirds dispatched the Magic in the final round of the regular season just two weeks ago in Hamilton, with the homeside unable to match the Queenslanders' accuracy on attack. Their task will be all the tougher on Monday, with the Firebirds coming off a disappointing performance against the Vixens.
The Queensland side's strength undoubtedly lies in their two bookends - star defender Laura Geitz and 1.96m Jamaican shooter Romelda Aiken. The Magic's defensive pairing of Casey Kopua and Leana de Bruin did a solid job of containing Aiken the last time the two sides met, but much of their gains were wasted on attack as the Waikato-Bay of Plenty side struggled to find a way through the Firebirds' slick transition defence.
The Magic will need to do a much better job of moving the ball through the court at pace to prevent the attack end from getting bogged down. It has been a mixed week for the Magic attack, with the Silver Ferns team announcement for the Commonwealth Games bringing both cheer and despair for members of the side. Uncapped shooter Ellen Halpenny was rewarded for her efforts this season with a call-up to the national side, while Grace Rasmussen, arguably New Zealand's top-performing wing attack, was unable to force her way into the Games team.
How those two players deal with the distraction and, in Rasmussen's case, disappointment, could be key to the Magic's success on Monday night.
Queensland Firebirds v Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic. Brisbane, Monday, 9.15pm
- By Dana Johannsen of the NZ Herald
