It is that time of the season when every last goal counts.
And the more the Steel can pop in against the Adelaide Thunderbirds in a crucial ANZ Championship match at the Edgar Centre tonight, the better its chances of reaching the play-offs will be.
The Queensland Firebirds' come-from-behind 59-57 win against the Northern Mystics in Auckland on Saturday has helped them tighten their hold on fourth place.
With seven wins from 12 matches the Thunderbirds are two points clear of the fifth-placed Steel, which has a game in hand.
But the fourth semifinal place could be decided by which team has the best goal differential if the Steel wins its remaining two matches and the Firebirds win their final round-robin game.
It is a scenario of which Steel sniper Donna Wilkins is only too aware.
"We have to win our next two. If we don't win this game we're still probably a mathematical chance, but we definitely need to win, and win well."
The former Silver Fern watched the Mystics' match on television and was willing the New Zealand team to hold on.
"I was yelling at the TV. What were the Mystics doing? They were up by seven and they choked."
A Mystics win and a Steel win tonight would have given the combined Otago-Southland side some breathing space.
Instead, the Steel desperately needs a win against a formidable opponent.
While the defence end of Katrina Grant and Megan Hutton have a huge part to play, Wilkins arguably is the key.
She combined well with Megan Dehn in the narrow 52-50 loss to the Firebirds in Brisbane last week.
Dehn replaced the pregnant Daneka Wipiiti and had a solid opening match.
But, without Wipiiti, the Steel's attack end has been weakened and the bulk of the shooting responsibilities will fall on Wilkins' shoulders.
The Thunderbirds' defensive duo of Geva Mentor and Mo'onia Gerrard are world class and any loose ball is sure to be swooped on by the von Bertouch sisters hovering on the fringes.
"Hopefully, they'll have an off day," Wilkins deadpanned.
"There is a lot of talent there. They've got a great team right from shooter through to goal keeper. That's why they are sitting third on the table.
"They've had a couple of massive wins of late, so it would be nice if they were a wee bit complacent."
The Thunderbirds dispatched the Central Pulse 70-40 in round 12 but were not that convincing despite the colossal total.
They went off the boil in two of the quarters and the last time they were in New Zealand they needed extra time to beat the Canterbury Tactix.
It is different when you play at home, the crowd lifts you, Wilkins commented.
"We are very fortunate that we are playing them in New Zealand. Hopefully, that can work in our favour. We're ecstatic that we have this crunch game at home, and the same with next week. It would be a different story if we had them across the Tasman."
The Steel will be without Silver Ferns defender Sheryl Scanlan.
She was ruled out with a calf injury.
Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic accomplished more than one mission by registering its latest win yesterday, NZPA reports.
It beat West Coast Fever 49-38 in Perth, becoming the first New Zealand franchise team to record a win on an Australian court in almost two full seasons of the ANZ Championship.
More importantly for Magic, an 11th victory in 12 outings left it one step closer to a home semifinal, something it can nail down by beating the Thunderbirds in it last regular-season match in Adelaide next Sunday.
Its star-studded line-up proved too powerful for sixth-placed Fever yesterday, the 22nd time a New Zealand side had tried its luck across the Tasman since the 10-team league was launched in 2008.
In Porirua yesterday, Central Pulse beat the New South Wales Swifts 53-52.
