The Steel breezed to a 87-40 win. That scoreline is about what you would expect from a professional outfit against an amateur team.
The real test will come this weekend when the Steel competes at the ANZ Championship Summer Shootout in Auckland. But in the meantime Tuarua is happy her side is trending in the right direction.
"I was relatively happy with what we put out there,'' she said.
"I do believe that we have taken another step up in regards to our performance and also the understanding of our game strategy.
"We still need a bit of work around our execution and the final delivery of ball. But I can only compare to what we did last week and it is getting better.''
The Steel produced a mixed bag in Ashburton last weekend. It beat the Tactix 64-47 in game one but lost the second encounter 60-54.
Taurua was unhappy with the links around the shooting circle and felt the defence was a little too leaky.
The team's execution under pressure needed sharpening up as well.
But Taurua was pleased the Steel had remained focused against Netball South.
"Sometimes when you beat an opponent by quite a bit it easy to just coast and just go through the motions but our last quarter was actually our best.
"We worked really hard to sustain the intensity, so it was a positive step up. We still have a lot of work but we are progressing in the right direction.''
The Steel set some specific goals in possession and shooting percentages.
Turnovers were too high but Taurua was thrilled with the Steel's goal-shooting percentage which she said was up at 94%.
Achieving that kind of accuracy against better defensive units is the next hurdle.
The Steel will get a good gauge of how it is shaping at the Summer Shootout.
"It is a big weekend coming up. I'm looking forward to it to see how we have progressed and also the other teams as well.''
While Netball South suffered a heavy defeat, Taurua felt "they presented themselves very well despite the lopsided scoreline''.
She was impressed with the work of 18-year-old shooter Jennifer O'Connell.
"She was actually very good and stood out for me. She is very talented and quite strong mentally and physically and had a great shot.''
