ROUND 9 of the Vitality Netball Superleague (VNSL) played host to a number of big upsets with Team Bath suffering their first loss of the season and Manchester Thunder getting over the top of Loughborough Lightning.

Manchester Thunder (59) defeated Loughborough Lightning (50)

Player of the match: Caroline O’Hanlon

Manchester Thunder showcased their class downing Loughborough Lightning and putting an end to their seven game winning streak. It was a comprehensive performance by the Thunder who impressed in both the second and fourth term to steal the win. After being neck and neck for large parts of the game Manchester pulled away to upset the second placed Lightning.

The combination of Joyce Mvula and Eleanor Cardwell were at it once again with the pair combining seamlessly under the post and opening up the court with their dynamic movement. Mvula was accurate to post nailing 36 goals from 38 attempts while Cardwell knocked back 23 goals to keep the scoreboard ticking over. Through the midcourt Caroline O’Hanlon was a rock, using her quick change of direction and fancy footwork to hit circle edge within a blink of an eye. The defensive pairing of Kerry Almond and Rebekah Airey was strong collecting three intercepts and five deflections amongst them. For the Lightning Mary Cholhok lit up the goal circle with her strong holds and aerial ability nailing 41 goals, but the production from Ella Clark and Suzie Liverseidge was down. Nat Panagarry and Beth Cobden were their usual selves but were well held by the likes of O’Hanlon and Amy Carter through the midcourt.

Severn Stars (33) defeated Celtic Dragons (27)

Player of the match: Paige Reed (Severn Stars)

Celtic Dragons are still on the hunt for their first win of the 2021 season as Severn Stars collected a six-goal victory on Sunday. In a battle of the lower placed teams it was the Stars that got the head start early opening up a four-goal buffer and held onto the lead tightly outscoring the Dragons in every quarter asides from the third. Their consistent ball movement, connections down the court and ability to capitalise on turnovers is what made the difference.

Georgia Rowe was a force to be reckoned with in at goal shooter for the Stars, holding her position under the post and using her accuracy to keep the scoreboard ticking. Rowe finished with 31 goals at 94 per cent. Partner in crime, Paige Reed made her presence felt across the court using her timing and hot hand to dominate under the post and secure player of the match honours thanks to her 15 goals and intercept. The win was soured however with Bethan Dyke going down with an injury early on in the piece. Dee Bolakoro and Lucy Herdman kept a close eye on Amy Clinton and Rebekah Robinson limiting any easy access to the goals and stifling their attacking movement. Both Abigail Tyrrell and Christina Shaw were heavily penalised giving the Stars a wealth of opportunities to add to their growing tally and put a nail in the coffin for thee Dragons.

London Pulse (37) defeated by Wasps Netball (49)

Player of the match: Amy Flanagan (Wasps Netball)

Wasps starred against a struggling London Pulse side collecting a 12-goal win as they continued their climb up the ladder. The Wasps looked like a well-oiled unit, utilising their strong connections across the court and high netball IQ to weave their magic and apply a wealth of pressure across the court. It was clear from the opening minutes that the Wasps’ only had one intention and that was to win and play clinical netball establishing a strong lead early and not letting go for the entire game.

The battle between Rachel Dunn in at goal shooter for the Wasps and Halimat Adio was one to keep an eye on as the duo did not take a backwards step as Dunn finished with 25 goals to her name and Adio worked in overdrive to negate her picking up three intercepts and seven deflections. Funmi Fadoju was rendered quiet with the Wasps outfit putting a lot of hard work into reducing her output and keeping her away from the action while through the midcourt Amy Flanagan was instrumental for the Wasps using her run and gun mentality to create opportunities aplenty for her side. the Pulse implemented their rotating goal circle with Sigi Burger, Kira Rothwell, Lefebre Rademan and Olivia Tchine all adding valuable goals to the scoreboard but unable to do enough to worry the Wasps defensive unit headlined by Fran Williams. Josie Huckle also played a pivotal role in defence combining with Williams for six intercepts and three deflections.

Saracens Mavericks (39) defeated Team Bath (38)

Player of the match: Sasha Corbin (Sarcens Mavericks)

In arguably the shock of the round, Team Bath were dethroned by Saracens Mavericks albeit by one goal in an absolute thriller. The previously undefeated Bath met their match, going down to a desperate and hungry Mavericks side who proved they have what it takes to mix it with the best and most importantly grind out games to win hard fought battles. The intensity was palpable from the first quarter with neither side willing to give an inch and working in overdrive to try and steal some ascendancy to claim a stake on the game at hand. In the end it was the efforts of the Mavericks that got them over the line as the dug deep to override the powerhouse Bath side.

Ine-Mari Venter was in fine form spending her time out in goal attack and making her presence felt with her 24 goals and two rebounds. Her partnership with Kadeen Corbin blossomed as the two balanced the circle nicely and created a wealth of shooting opportunities and converted at a high accuracy. The win however has been marred with a suspected ankle injury to stalwart goal keeper Razia Quashie with the defender awaiting scans. The goalers for Team Bath were steady under the post as Kim Borger nailed 27 goals and Sophie Drakeford-Lewis sunk 11 goals with the pair only missing three goals for the game. without Imogen Allison the defensive unit looked a bit different as Tash Pavelin secured the wing defence slot, Layla Guscoth got the nod in at goal defence but drew a lot of whistle while Eboni Usoro-Brown was strong back in goal keeper but it was not enough to quell the Mavs. Serena Guthrie was electric through the centre picking up four deflections as was Gabby Marshall for the Mavericks who led from the front to control proceedings.