The first quarter saw Grasshopper Netball Club coming straight out of the blocks. They moved into a storming lead by applying some excellent mid-court pressure on Lincoln City 2, whilst Kate Garner and Laura Harbour were working well together in defence. There was also some excellent shooting and interplay by Beth Smith and Donna Osborn, which meant that Grasshoppers led 11-6 at the end of the quarter.
Grasshoppers didn’t capitalise on their excellent start during the second quarter though. Their usual great passing into the attacking circle was being increasingly intercepted by a Lincoln City 2 defence, which was beginning to find its feet. Importantly these interceptions were being converted by Lincoln City 2 as well, meaning the scores were tied 19-19 at half time. Grasshopper Netball Club’s Coach, Anne Melling made some changes at half time, taking off Goal Shooter, Beth Smith and bringing on Andy Flewitt. Wing Attack, Karmen Askew was also swapped for Claire Fielding. It was ‘honours even’ in the third quarter, however, with some closely contested court play and shots that followed in, from end to end. The score at the end of this quarter was 26-26. What a cliff-hanger! Coach Melling made some more changes for the final quarter, which saw Grasshoppers revert back to its starting seven. However, they’d just run out of steam. Lincoln City 2 stepped up yet another gear, winning the game with a final score of 29-42. Grasshopper Netball Club’s player of the match was Goal Defence, Laura Harbour. For further details about the Grasshopper Netball Club, please check out the website: www.grasshoppernetballclub.co.uk Lincoln City 2 were awarded their first win of the season against Grasshoppers on Sunday (30/09/12).
The first quarter started slowly as a new Lincoln City 2 line up found their feet. Amy Womersley came into the team at Goal Keeper alongside Jade Houlton, whilst Lizzie Saywell started at Wing Defence. There were many turnovers during the first 15 minutes, which meant that Lincoln City 2 were unable to capitalise on some of the opportunities they had created. It also meant that Grasshoppers were leading 11-6 at the end of the first period. Lincoln City 2’s coach, Pam Sturton made some changes for the second quarter, which saw Lizzie move to Goal Keeper and Beth Sullivan to Wing Defence. Amy moved into her natural position at Goal Attack with Charlotte Bayes making a confident appearance as Wing Attack, where she made a fantastic two handed interception in the centre court, as well as provided great feeds into attack. Lincoln City 2 won this quarter 13-8, levelling the score at 19-19. The third quarter saw Grasshoppers’ marking become a little tighter, which limited Lincoln City 2’s chances. Both teams scored seven goals each during this period though, finishing 26-26. With the scores tied, Lincoln City 2 went ‘all out’ in the final quarter as Laura Forsey moved to Centre, allowing Zoe Cooper to take a little breather at Wing Defence. Vicky Bayes returned at Goal Attack alongside Amy as Goal Shooter, meaning that a combination of strength and height were on court for any rebounds, which had to be made. Even so, Lincoln City 2 had to fight hard to secure their first win of the season. Lizzie made some great interceptions in defence against a tall Grasshoppers Goal Shooter and Zoe was fantastic as she turned over two of Grasshoppers’ centres in a row. The combined team effort ensured that Lincoln City 2 won the final quarter by 18 goals to 3, taking the overall score to 29-42 in Lincoln City 2’s favour. Player of the Match went to Charlotte Bayes for her feeds into attack, re-offering for the ball and that unforgettable two-handed interception in centre court. Falcons Yellow march on with a convincing win over Iceni in their second match of the 2012/2013 Regional Division 2 season. Based on Iceni's convincing win over Lincoln City 2 in the first game of the new season, Falcons Yellow knew that this game was not going to be a walkover. However, they produced netball of the highest calibre to come away with a decisive win. The first quarter saw a very determined and focused Falcons Yellow lead 13 - 6. This was due to the defensive trio of Brown, Jackson and Mason breaking down the attacking moves of a very strong Iceni team. Their endeavours were repaid in full with the shooting duo of Warren and Bottomley, who not only converted most of their own centres into goals but also many of Iceni's centres that Falcons Yellow had successfully turned over as well. Brennan and Howard also produced some wonderful feeds and great drives to the circle edge, making it very difficult for Iceni to defend.
Going into the final quarter, Falcons Yellow led 39 - 23. Holt came off the bench to replace a not-surprisingly tired Howard at Wing Attack. Holt's impact was immediate. Quickly passing and moving around the court, she produced a number of slick interchanges with Owen, Bottomley and Warren to create more goal-scoring opportunities for Falcons Yellow. Although already beaten by this point, Iceni never gave up though, making this period the tightest scoreline of all four quarters. Falcons Yellow could relax if they wanted to win the quarter and although a tight affair, they managed to clinch it 12 - 10.
Final score Falcons 51 - Iceni 33. The whole to team played well but the player of the match goes to the defensive trio of Brown, Mason and Jackson. Team - Sarah Bottomley (GS), Nina Warren (GA), Weller Howard (WA), Mel Brennan (C), Tamsin Mason (WD), Samantha Brown (GD), Beth Jackson (GK) : Subs Jo Holt (WA & coach), Laura Owen (C). Division 2
Sunday 23rd September saw Nottingham Knights take on Sleaford Barge in their East Midlands Netball Regional League Division 2 campaign. This was a fast-paced game from the very first whistle right up to the very last. The first quarter saw the netball move from one end of the court to the other as both teams successfully converted from their centre passes. However, as the quarter moved on, Nottingham Knights made several crucial mid-court interceptions, which saw them take a 14-11 lead into the second quarter. Unfortunately, an injury to Knights Goal Attack, Fiona Hale, forced a change in the shooting circle but it also gave an opportunity to youngster, Gabby Titley-Wilson to show what she could do. Gabby held her own brilliantly against a stubborn Sleaford Barge defence, enabling Knights to maintain their three-goal margin at half-time (24-21). The break allowed Knights to make further changes. They rested some tired legs and gave further opportunities to the new and younger players to learn about this level of competitive netball. However, this also played into Sleaford Barge's hands. The opposition continued to use their very experienced players, which meant that Knights struggled at times to get the ball into the shooting circle during the third quarter. It all resulted in Sleaford Barge levelling the scores at the end of this period. The last quarter was a very tough battle as both teams searched for any advantage. However, Sleaford Barge found it and won the game by just a single-goal margin. Knights knew that they had their chances to win the game but unfortunately Sleaford's greater number of interceptions in mid-court proved to be crucial. Knights were so disappointed that they are already looking for revenge against Sleaford during the second round of Regional games next year! Knights have a 'rest' next week as their game against Iceni is to be rearranged due to five of Knights' squad members running the Nottingham Robin Hood 1/2 marathon to raise money for St John's Hospice, a Sue Ryder charity. The ladies are running in memory of Knights centre Dani Gatt's sister, Chantelle, who sadly lost her battle with cancer four months ago. Division 2
Grasshopper Netball Club’s second game in their 2012 Regional League Division 2 campaign ended in defeat against a strong Charnwood Sapphires side at Loughborough University (23/09/12). Charnwood were dominant from the off, converting from their very first centre pass. They proceeded to make it even more difficult for Grasshoppers by consistently moving the ball up the court at a fast pace and often converting their chances. Meanwhile, their very strong defence left few clear chances for Grasshoppers. Indeed, the quarter ended with Charnwood leading by 12 goals to 6. The second quarter saw Grasshoppers get off to a better start as they applied more-telling pressure and made it difficult for Charnwood to get on the score sheet. However, despite their commendable effort, Charnwood went on to win the quarter with a 13-goal lead. Grasshoppers were still not down and out in the third quarter, as they fought hard to level the score. This proved to be the most tightly contested quarter, thanks to some accurate shooting from Grasshoppers and an alert defence against a Charnwood Sapphires attack that at times looked likely they couldn't miss. Charnwood Sapphires brought on fresh legs for the final quarter, which only made life more difficult for Grasshoppers, who were a little thin on the ground. It also meant that Grasshoppers rarely saw the ball in the final third of the court but when they did, they ensured that they capitalised on their chances. Overall, Grasshoppers put in yet another strong team performance, highlighted by the fact that ‘Player of the Match’ was distributed amongst three of their players: Donna Osborn, Selina Jones and Rebecca Smith. Division 2
The second round match of Iceni's Regional League Division 2 season could not have been more different than their first match of the season against Lincoln City 2. This week, Iceni played Falcons Yellow in what should have been a closely fought game. However, it was just not Iceni's day. The team had a few key players missing and struggled against some of Falcon Yellow's strong plays. Iceni just couldn't get a stranglehold on the game and ended up losing 53-33. A tough day for Iceni but plenty to take into training this week. Division 2
Sleaford Barge won their latest East Midlands Regional League Divison 2 game against Nottingham Knights today. Although the team were trailing 11-14 and 24-28 after the first two quarters, a spirited half time pep-talk from captain Rosie James lifted Sleaford Barge to the point where they finally started to gel in the third quarter. The greater cohesive team effort resulted in Sleaford creating more goal-shooting opportunities and these were successfully converted through Jade Newman's and Emma Sharpe's fantastic shooting. By the time the fourth quarter had started, Sleaford were level at 35-35. It meant both teams thought they could snatch victory. The final fifteen minutes saw end-to-end play, with each team pegging the other side back. However, Sleaford managed to pull ahead slightly and hold on to win the game 48-47. For more information on Sleaford Barge Netball, please visit our website. www.sleafordbargenetball.co.uk Week two of the Regional League Division 2 netball season resulted in a loss for Lincoln City 2. Lincoln City 2 started well against Brigg & District with some brilliant drives at centre passes from Wing Attack, Zoe Cooper and Goal Attack, Vicky Bayes. With a fairly new formation of Lizzie Saywell and Jade Houlton in defence, they were also able to overturn possession on several occasions, meaning the score was a close 9 goals to 12 in Brigg & District's favour after the first quarter.
The second quarter saw a change in mid court as Emily Coulter came on at centre and Megan Samways moved to Wing Defence. However, Brigg managed to steal a nine-goal lead and Lincoln City 2 finished the quarter 17-26 down. After a change of tactics, which saw Jade moved to Goal Shooter alongside Laura Forsey to provide more height in the attacking third, Lincoln City 2 were hoping to close the gap. The switch proved shaky at first, but once settled the team eventually won the quarter. The defensive partnership of Vic Adams and Lizzie saw many turnovers in their end of the court and helped to take Brigg’s lead down to 5 goals. By the end of the second quarter the score was Lincoln CIty 2 26-31 Brigg & District. Lincoln City 2 went into the fourth quarter, confident of turning the match around. However, Brigg's fantastic shooting, which had been of a consistently high standard throughout the match, saw them through in the end. By the time a late injury had resulted in the Bayes sisters moving into attack, the deficit was too much and Lincoln City 2 lost their second game of the season 33-49. The team were a credit to themselves, never giving up and defending as a whole team but it was just not to be their day. Player of the Match went to Emily Coulter for her impressive performance for so many quarters at Centre.
The final score showing how much Iceni dominated Lincoln City 2. Iceni 65 - 26 Lincoln City 2. Iceni's Player of the match was awarded to Rachel Burton-Allaway.
This week's Iceni's Player of the match sponsor was 3D Windows – 07715 444770 – www.3dwindowsltd.co.uk Division 2
Grasshopper’s opening game against Nottingham Knights proves to be an eye-opener Grasshopper Netball Club’s opening match of the East Midlands Regional Division 2 League ended in defeat against last year’s winners Nottingham Knights. Grasshopper rightfully earned their place in the league, after coming third in the Regional Netball Tournament held in the summer. But this game was possibly the toughest of encounters at Loughborough University’s Netball centre with the final score being: Nottingham Knights 52-32 Grasshopper. Grasshopper got off to a promising start, converting from each of their Centre passes. However, the latter part of the quarter saw them struggle, as they frequently lost possession under pressure from the opposition who pulled away with a 9-goal lead. The second quarter saw Grasshopper players apply more pressure, as they fought hard to prevent the league winners from converting their first centre pass. Some perfectly timed interceptions took place but despite their efforts, exceptional space awareness from Nottingham Knight’s attacking players saw them win the quarter 29-16. Nottingham Knights continued to dominate in the third quarter with Grasshoppers trailing 40-21 at the end of the quarter. However, the final quarter was the most tightly contested, as Grasshoppers fought hard to close the gap on the leaders. Indeed, this proved to be Grasshopper’s highest scoring quarter. Rising young talent, Beth Smith, won Player of the Match, after an impressive display as Goal Shooter. Smith’s accurate and consistent shooting played a major role in ensuring that Grasshoppers stayed in contention throughout the game. Despite the loss, Grasshopper team captain Donna Osborn spoke highly of the team’s performance. She said, “It was a fantastic team effort from players both on and off the court. There was an abundance of positive play that we will take back to training to work on and improve”. Grasshopper Netball Club has the Silver CAPS award and for further details, please visit: http://www.grasshoppernetballclub.co.uk |
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