All eyes will be on how the Swifts start their campaign following a dominant performance at the recent Pre-Season Tournament in Melbourne, where they went through their six matches undefeated. As new coach Rob Wright pointed out afterwards, it’s hard to take much out of that into the regular season. But there’s no doubt the Swifts look a sharp, slick and confident squad as they look to return to Finals action after a two-year absence from the post-season.

The addition of star recruits Sharni Layton (Adelaide) and Caitlin Thwaites (Haier Pulse) has certainly strengthened their line-up at each end of the court and given Wright plenty of options in his combinations. There’s a lot of optimism among Fever fans about their Finals prospects in 2014 after adding Mission Queensland Firebirds pair Natalie Medhurst and Chelsea Pitman and Kia Magic midcourter Khao Watts to their squad.

Medhurst’s combination with goal shooter Caitlin Bassett in Australia’s Test series last year gave a pointer towards how formidable that could become on a weekly basis for the Perth-based team. It’s the second year in a row these two teams have faced off in the opening round. Last season the Swifts proved too strong for the Fever, recording a 14-goal victory.