1st Team Match Report –
For the Netball 1sts, Varsity this year was always going to be tough. The girls knew what to expect from Met – a well contested physical game right to the last whistle.
With new members added, GS Ciara Crosbie, GA Tash Scott and WA Emily Pasquale, the 1sts had many combinations to play with.
The first half showed the depth of the squad, with fantastic performances from our shooting combination Ciara and Tash, as well as great defensive pressure from the Potter sisters and Rachel Wilkes.
Uni attacked with great confidence from the off, leading by 3 at half time.
Sadly, this lead couldn’t hold, as Met pressure increased during the second half, and their quality shone through despite the effort of the Uni girls.
In their closest encounter yet with Leeds Met, as Uni were defeated 51-45, many positives will be taken away from this display, demonstrated by the improvements the squad has made in the past year.
Going into BUCS the girls have showed how strong they can be, it’s just a case of seeing it through for the whole 60 minutes.
2nd Team Match Report –
On a grim day for Uni Netball sides, the 2nds went down 42-16 to a Met team whose quality shone through on the day.
The game got off to a close start, with Uni converting most centres to goal with some excellent shooting and attacking play in and around the circle.
Down by just a few goals going into the second quarter, more effort was made to drive the ball down the court. Despite some great turnover on defence, Met took advantage of the Uni’s more attacking approach, ending the first half of the game with twice as many points.
The second half was tough, with tiredness setting in. Despite a tremendous amount of effort and resilience girls throughout, Uni struggled to get into the attacking third.
Although the end score was 42-16, there was some evidence of great play, and a strong foundation on which to work and improve on ready for the BUCS matches. A disappointing score in the end but a great show of effort from the team, against an impressive Leeds Met side.
3rds Team Match report –
After just an hour of training with a new team, the pressure was on the fresh talent to show what it was made of in Uni’s most fiercely fought fixture of the year
The first quarter began well but slowly inconsistency started to show through unforced errors and pressured, wayward shooting.
Strong work from Ellie and Brittany in the D intercepting and rebounding couldn’t prevent Met from starting to build a healthy lead, which would ultimately result in defeat.
The second quarter saw Met take advantage of Uni weaknesses, stepping up to all attacking attempts. With congestion in centre court, mistakes increased, but multiple turnovers and a strong fighting spirit boosted morale in the second quarter.
With fresh legs in the third quarter and Clare in the attacking D, movement was stronger and confidence grew through the team.
Moving into the 4th quarter there was a final push with some solid play all the way down the court. Sadly the gap was too great. Despite ending on a high by winning the last quarter, Uni lost 32-19.
4th Team Match report –
As a brand new team, the time had come to step onto the court for the debut from hell: Varsity.
The first quarter was played at a fast tempo, as Met came out strongly, putting Uni on the back foot.
Excellent interceptions from Georgie and Alice helped keep the game open, complimented by good movement from Vanessa, Anna and Beth in mid court.
By the third quarter the shooters got into their stride, applying pressure around the D to narrow the deficit.
However, by the fourth quarter, Met stepped up their game and, although Uni put up a good fight, Met took the victory.
Despite the 37-16 loss, Georgie Andes took away the player of the match award, with non-stop running and great interceptions throughout.
Sidonie Wilson
Image courtesy of Gryphons