THEY'VE continued to defy expectations in 2020. And on Tuesday night, the South Coast Blaze hope to do so just one more time.
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In their debut season, the Blaze's under 23s will compete in the NSW Premier League grand final against UTS Randwick Sparks.
Blaze coach Regan Tweddle said the players were excited for the challenge.
"The girls are feeling pretty good. They're pumped and ready to go," she said.
"We're expecting a very physical game from them.
"They'll be hunting for that ball and be really tight man on man, contesting every ball and putting pressure on us.
"We need to stay calm and stick to our game plan, and do what we know we do well to get around them."
No matter the result, it's been an impressive first campaign for the Blaze under 23s.
The side finished as conference B minor premiers, before booking their grand final spot with a 65-40 win over North Shore United in last week's semi-final.
The Blaze started well and never looked back, opening up a 35-20 lead at half time. North Shore continued to battle, but the Blaze pressed on to secure victory.
The result came after the Blaze lost three of their previous four games.
"It was an amazing turnaround and that's they're capable of," Tweddle said.
"But it's quite frustrating in the same breath, because they're capable of that and it's the way they should be playing
"You always have that dream as a coach and as a team to be in the grand final but for it to actually come true, in our first ever year in the Premier League, it's an amazing achievement."
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