The Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic has a history of holding its nerve when it matters most and veteran defender Leana de Bruin hopes the side can ignore the form books to do just that on Sunday.
The Magic goes into this weekend's New Zealand conference final against the Steel in Invercargill as the distant second-best Kiwi side, well behind the unbeaten Steel and having been outclassed by the southern side twice this year.
But the side was in a similar position last season, when it finished second in the New Zealand conference with just five wins before upsetting the table-topping Mystics in the conference final.
The Mystics lost just four of their 11 games last year and were at home when the Magic beat them 57-54 to win the conference.
The experienced side also displayed its big-game temperament the week before, when it held off the Steel in the conference elimination final to claim an extra time victory.
Captain de Bruin, who turned 39 on Saturday and has played in her fair share of playoffs matches, said her side had no choice but to believe it could topple the unbeaten Steel at Stadium Southland.
The loser of Sunday's match will be thrown a lifeline but will face the unenviable task of travelling across the Tasman to take on the Australian conference winner in one semifinal.
"We've got to believe in ourselves and take it one game at a time,'' de Bruin said of her team's philosophy in the finals series.
"We had a do-or-die situation against the Mystics [in the conference elimination final] last week and it was really good to see people step up in a physical battle.
"[Invercargill is] not the easiest place to go and play and no doubt it will be a tough encounter but we've got nothing to lose.''
The Magic was hit by injuries at the beginning of this season and lost its first five games (de Bruin missed five of the first six matches with a foot injury) before going on a five-match winning streak against New Zealand opposition.
However, it was brought back to earth with a 10-goal loss to the Steel in Invercargill and a 71-47 thrashing from the Firebirds in Hamilton a week later.
It finished the regular season with a 56-55 win over the Thunderbirds in Hamilton and put away the Mystics, 63-47, in the New Zealand conference elimination final in Hamilton last weekend.
Despite being beaten by the Steel 63-53 in Rotorua in round three and 64-54 in Invercargill in round 12, de Bruin said her side would offer a different challenge now it was back to full strength.
"We're a different team. Last time we played them we were missing Kristiana Manu'a and the other time we didn't have me or Grace [Rasmussen].
"We've got to worry about our own game. We know they can score very fast and the only way we're going to win this game is if we're very clinical. It's not the easiest thing to get the ball off them.''
The Magic had produced some good patches of netball but was still searching for a complete performance, de Bruin, who played for the Steel in 2010 and 2011, said.
In contrast, the Steel had built each game and quickly established itself as the team to beat in the Kiwi conference.
De Bruin said the Steel's success this year was the result of the platform laid in recent years.
"They've built for the last three or four years. They've had the core of their side stay down there.
"Jhaniele [Fowler-Reid] has really improved her game a lot and the people feeding her are doing an amazing job.
"They're playing well together as a team. That's probably the biggest difference I can see.''
De Bruin has played 122 ANZ Championship matches as well as 138 test matches (104 for New Zealand and 34 for South Africa). She was named in this year's Silver Ferns squad subject to availability but had yet to make a decision on her playing future.
