Playing in front of a raucous crowd of Firebirds members, the home team led throughout the contest against the two-time Suncorp Super Netball defending premiers in a perfect warm up for next weekend's opening round of the season proper.
Laura Geitz Medallist Macy Gardner was a constant presence throughout the game, with a couple of early intercepts setting the tone as the Firebirds opened up an early lead.
By quarter-time, despite a couple of Suncorp Super Shots by Lauren Frew, the Firebirds held a narrow one-goal lead.
That margin grew to 10 goals after a dominant second quarter, with Isabelle Shearer standing tall against multiple premiership winner and former Firebird Romelda Aiken-George as the Firebirds' attacking end with Mary Cholhok and Emily Moore caught fire.
Despite making a raft of changes to the line-up at halftime, the Firebirds continued to hold their lead for most of the third quarter before some two-point shots from newcomer Kayla Graham cut the margin to eight goals heading into the final term.
As expected, the experienced Thunderbirds turned the screw in the final term putting the Firebirds under pressure as Graham's two-point shooting drew the visitors closer and closer but the home team held firm to complete the win.
The Firebirds will now turn their attentions to their Suncorp Super Netball season opener against GIANTS Netball at Ken Rosewall Arena from 2pm on April 6.
Tickets are also available now from Ticketek for all seven Firebirds home games starting with the visit of the West Coast Fever on Saturday, April 12 at 5pm.
