The Fire side went into the game with plenty of confidence after having gained back a number of players who had suffered injuries or been sidelined throughout the season, offering them the opportunity to field a fully stocked team, according to Coach Rebecca Mays.

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"It was a really good game for us, we had most of our players back, so we actually had three subs, which was unusual for us given how this season has been," Mays said.

"It was a matter of shifting around players and ensuring everyone got their time on the court, but also making sure we were playing good netball as well in our positions."

The Fire, who have had a strong season despite at one point dropping back to back games to Fusion Heat and the Inspire Rebels in rounds seven and eight, were forced to work throughout the game in order to maintain a narrow lead in a similarly nail-biting performance to their last outing against the Saints.

"Saints are always a tough out, they played very well the last time we played them, we only won by three or four and they chased us down to the last minute."

"In this game their defence was very effective in putting pressure on our shooters and they had a great goal shooter who was very effective early and helped them make it was another close game."

Mays put a lot of the Fire's successful effort down to Wing Defence Lucy Roberts, who was key in turning back the Saint's pressure and attacking runs and creating opportunities for the Fire's own scorers to put points on the board.

"Lucy Roberts was fantastic for us, she got that much ball in defence and she kept turning it around and giving our shooters another attempt at their goal, which was vitally important especially given the close finish."

Mays noted that the results have been narrowing overall for the competition throughout the season, as clubs have returned to full strength and approached their form looking toward finals.

"Injuries are always a bit of a worry, we started quite strong this year and we usually come into our own over the competition, I think usually our games are very competitive, and we've managed to get ahead."

"For us, every game will be close, I would like us get a little bit closer to Heat when we do get up against them again, of course," Mays said.

"But the other teams around us, they're also getting better the whole time and it's going to be a matter of us figuring out what our combinations are as we rotate people back in off of injuries and how we figure out what positions are going to be best for those players in our combinations."