Leeds 2s v Lets Met 2s
After a good warm up everyone felt prepared and fired up for the fight against Met which Leeds Uni 2s were determined to win. Pressuring them from the start through the first 2 quarters, with some great defending from Amy Needham, Met could not find their rhythm. Alongside excellent work through the court by Lucinda Swayne and Cezaria Kuncewicz, Uni were getting the ball into the shooters, but a couple of turnovers for Met meant we were trailing by 2 at half time.
After a fighting team talk, the girls stepped back on court aiming to take the lead in the third quarter. With some fantastic interceptions from Georgia Blessed and Harriet Higby in the circle, turnover after turnover were coming Uni’s way, and with Emily Morrice driving to bring the ball up the court we were taking control of the game. Our efforts were rewarded as the quarter finished 25-25.
All was to play for in the final quarter in which Uni went all out for the win. The ball was moving swiftly through court with some great movement and feeds into the circle by Sophie Duncan. Jess Garrington and Natasha Scott kept us in the game putting up the shots and working well in the circle together. Unfortunately, after a few misplaced passes, Met turned their turnovers into goals to advance their lead and win the game. This was a disappointing result but Leeds Uni 2s fought until the end and played some brilliant netball.
Leeds 3s v Northumbria
After a long journey but a good warm up, Leeds 3rds knew they had a difficult match ahead. We went into the first quarter strong, gaining a 4-0 lead due to Chavonne Duckworth and Clare Steele’s mighty work in the circle. Unfortunately, a few unforced errors meant Northumbria quickly closed the lead, ending the quarter 9-8 up.
With Olivia Ellis fighting back against some tough defence, the second quarter started strong. Catriona Leggat made great interceptions and with her feeding the ball into the shooters, the goals kept coming. However strong Northumbria attack meant the goals were consistent between the two teams, as the second quarter ended 19-18 to Northumbria.
Despite amazing efforts from everyone in the team, Northumbria fought well, and by the end of the third quarter Leeds were down by 4. After a good team talk from Issy McNeile, Leeds knew they had to pull it back. Determined efforts from Ellie Ward and Claudia Cardinali forced errors from the opponent’s attack allowing Leeds to close the gap. Unfortunately there wasn’t enough time to pull it back and the final score ended 37-36.
Player of the Match: Olivia Ellis
Leeds 5s v York
As it was the first match for the fifths after the Christmas break, we approached the game with a hunger to win. After previously beating York at the away game, we felt confident today, especially with the home advantage.
The first quarter began very well as Uni capitalised on our centre passes and turned many balls over throughout the court. Great shooting stats from Ellie Harris and Maya Szlachetko ensured we took a strong lead, while exceptional defending from Onah Ezunkanma and Ellie Wilde kept it tight at the back.
In the second quarter we continued to build on our lead, as fantastic attacking throughout the court by Olivia Russel ensured the ball was brought effectively down the court to goal. At half time fresh legs were brought on court with Anne Tan coming on at wing defence and Hannah Faulkner on at goal shooter.
The third quarter did not disappoint and we able to build on our lead further, ensuring we were in a very comfortable position going into the final quarter. Great interceptions from Ellie Wilde and Anne Tan ensured opportunity after opportunity were capitalised on. The shooters worked superbly moving the ball around the circle and putting up lots of shots. The whole team worked really well together with everyone putting in 100 percent effort and we achieved a well-deserved strong win that will boost our goal difference in the league greatly, as the game ended 52-13.
Leeds 6s v Bradford
After getting lost in the middle of Bradford, only 5 players were at the venue in time for a small warm up. With seconds to spare the rest of the team arrived and were rushed on to court with no warm up, but were at least able to start the game. The rushed atmosphere was reflected in the frantic first quarter play, although we still managed to come out with an 11-2 lead.
The second quarter was calmer and there was some great play all the way through the court. Angel Wu moved from WD to GD and made some brilliant interceptions. The team moved the ball up court with ease, but slacked a bit on man-to-man defence. The game ended 51-11.
Player of the Match: Nat Dixon
Sidonie Wilson
Images courtesy of Sidonie Wilson