Defensive masterclass leads Opals to victory over Serbia

A potential injury to Bec Allen put a late dampener on an otherwise positive night for the Australian Opals.

Credit: May Bailey Photography

Fresh off a win over Mali and with a rest day under their belts, the Australian Opals’ clash against Serbia came at a highly intriguing time: right in the middle of the group stage, and against a team with who they shared the same 1-1 record.

Whilst the 60-point win over Mali showcased an almost polar opposite performance from what we saw in the opener against France, there were, of course, detractors attempting to shrug off the performance as coming against one of the perceived weaker teams in the competition. Then, of course, there is the recent history that the Opals have with Serbia. Of course, it was Serbia who knocked Australia out of the Rio 2016 Olympics, but of the current squad, only Cayla George, Marianna Tolo, and Steph Talbot were part of that team, and there has been plenty of turnover in the Serbian roster since then as well. More pertinently, Serbia got the better of the Opals in Belgrade at the World Cup Qualifying Tournament, a game remembered partly for the ejection of Talbot after her elbow accidentally found Jovana Nogic’s head in the second quarter. A number of players had mentioned getting one back on Serbia in this game, but was it a case of rivalry brewing, or just the Opals using any possible motivation they could find?