Records fall as Steel piles on points

Nothing seems to be able to stop Jhaniele Fowler-Reid and the Southern Steel at the moment.

A record-breaking performance culminated in it claiming a 90-41 win over the Mainland Tactix in Christchurch last night.

The 90 goals beat the Steel's previous record of 84 for most in a game, while Fowler-Reid's 70 from 75 was the most by an individual Steel player.

It was clinical, it was dominant and it was a brutal demonstration of the contrast between the best and worst teams in the ANZ Premiership.

The Steel remains unbeaten at the top of the table, while the Tactix looks a long way from its first win.

While it was far from a one-person game, Fowler-Reid proved virtually unstoppable as she put in her most prolific performance of an illustrious career.

The 70 goals had not been a target, although it was something that had come up in conversations between her and coach Reinga Bloxham.

''It is very exceptional,'' Bloxham said of the 70 goals.

''It was something she and I had discussed earlier during our chats during the week.

''It was something we had in the back of our mind, but it wasn't our focus.

''Towards the end of the game, when we thought she was getting quite close to that margin that she had previously, she was sort of asking 'how many goals have I got to go?'.''

She put the 70th one in with just seconds to go, capping a superb performance from the Steel.

It was a competitive game for about four minutes.

The defence of the Tactix was active in the circle during that time and forced two turnovers, allowing it to take a 2-0 lead.

However, it only managed another five attempts in the quarter.

The cracks began to appear quickly, as Fowler-Reid got her first attempt up and the Jamaican goal shoot promptly added three goals in 40 seconds.

At that point the Steel took over.

Its defence was well-organised and prevented the Tactix getting the ball to its shooters, while its attack was slick and clinical.

The second quarter was much the same, the Steel attack proving a class above as it racked up 24 goals to the Tactix's 10.

Through the midcourt and on defence the Steel operated at a speed well above that of its opponent as it ran rampant.

Fowler-Reid proved near impossible to stop, receiving feeds from all over.

She had 35 goals at halftime. In contrast, the Tactix managed only 20 attempts.

Youngsters Jamie Hume and Abby Erwood entered the game at the beginning of the third quarter and picked up where the starters finished off.

However, it was also the best quarter for the Tactix, as it managed 12 goals to the Steel's 19.

It managed 12 again in the fourth, but a landslide ensued at the other end, as the Steel piled on 25 to reach 90 in the final seconds.

Bloxham was happy with the performance, although she said it was not perfect.

''I think at times the quality wasn't as crisp and as sharp as we wanted it to be.

''We sort of set ourselves some goals and made sure we stuck to the process and stuck to our structures.

''But at times not 100% happy with it, but still pretty stoked we managed to have a good win and break a few of those records as well. That was pretty cool.''

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