Hawks SMP Tiling book ONA second division grand final berth

But up stepped Nyassa Campbell who steadied the ship with some sharp shooting to sink the Whiteley Ironside comeback.

"I'm a pretty calm person, so I was like 'we're right, we've got this'," Campbell said when asked how she felt during that third quarter comeback attempt.

"(When I'm shooting) I completely clear out. I'm just like 'put it up and it's going to go in'."

And while the tension went away during the game, it's fair to say there were a few jitters prior to the Orange Netball Association preliminary final.

"There were a couple of nervous wees," Campbell said with a laugh.

Hawks led the match from start to finish and while it was their hot shooting which got them home, it was the defenders who stepped up in the first half.

Leasa Konza's length in the back-court proved a near impossible task for Ironside attackers, as Hawks held their opposition to just nine points through 30 minutes of action.

But the goal keeper was quick to shine the spotlight on the rest of the squad.

"Everyone played their own game and played the game they love to be honest," she said.

"When talking strategy, we talked about space. Giving them that space for those tips and intercepts.

Although you couldn't tell by her play on the court, fair to say Konza didn't share the same confidence as her attacking teammate when their lead began to drop.

"Uh oh," she said when asked what was going through her mind at that point.

"(Ironside) are a really good team and they're really strong. We knew they'd come out fighting.

"We were very nervous, very scared and when they started to make a comeback, we thought the writing was on the wall."

In the end, the game finished 37-26 in favour of Hawks as they outscored their opponents 11-8 in the final quarter.

Konza put the victory down to one thing in particular.

"We know we play our best game when we have fun and when we laugh," she said.

"It was about backing ourselves, because we knew that we'd all do something dumb on the court, so when you did your dumb thing, get over it and play the game."

The victory sets up a derby clash against minor premiers Hawks Forefront Services.

The two teams met in round one of the finals, with Forefront coming out on top 48-38.

Konza knows her Hawks have it in them to pull off the upset.

"They're a fantastic side and although they've beaten us the last few games, it's been neck and neck going into that last quarter," she added.

"We love them and it will be a great game."

Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens.

Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.