WITH the Vitality Netball Superleague (VNSL) season just around the corner after a year-long hiatus due to the COVID-19 enforced cancellation in 2020, Draft Central takes a look at each team, its player list and expectations. The next team under the microscope is London Pulse who reinvigorated themselves last season and will be eager to continue that vein of form into their 2021 campaign.

The Pulse will be raring to go in season 2021 as they look to iron out their connections across the court and land some early blows. With some familiar partnerships across the court the Pulse will be hoping to exploit opposition teams and use their quick hands to have an impact and rise up the ladder.

2021 expectations/predictions:

There is speed to burn through the midcourt with Adean Thomas a real livewire through the centre third thanks to her give and go and fancy footwork to dance across the court. Thomas can play both centre and wing attack with great ease credit to her attacking mindset and lightning fast hands. Michelle Drayne and Ashleigh Dekker are formidable through the midcourt providing that level of consistency to keep the ball flowing with relative ease. New inclusion inside the goal circle Lefebre Rademan is set to be an energiser bunny with her spatial awareness and baseline drives crucial to her game play. The SPAR Proteas representative is no stranger to the big stage and will be hoping to bring that level of composure and class with ball in hand to the Pulse this season. Youngster Assaindey Olivia Tchine can also rotate through the circle and have an impact with her smooth movement and goal sense giving the Pulse multiple avenues to goal.

Defensively the Pulse are bursting at the seams with a plethora of talented options able to rotate through the back half. Halimat Adio is a key figure in the defensive circle for the Pulse able to read the play and slot into the space to cherry pick passes while Funmi Fadoju is another commanding figure in the defensive end. Fadoju can play both goal keeper and goal defence while Adio can also swing into wing defence when required. The options do not stop there with Zara Everitt and Lindsay Keable able to ply their trade in defence to pick up loose ball and create turnovers.

Player to watch:

It is hard to go past Sigi Burger with the South African goal shooter a real menace under the post when it comes to volume and accuracy. Burger is more than capable of controlling the airwaves credit to her dominance in the air and height to reel in passes on a frequent basis. Standing at 194cm she is no slouch inside the circle able to dictate the play and nullify the influence of her defender with her body positioning and angles. Burger can withstand the constant physical pressure stemming from defenders and has a steady head under the post to think her way through the defence and deliver. She can score at a quick rate making her a key target for the Pulse and will be hoping to continue her strong form. Another aspect of her game play is her ability to push out to goal attack and impose herself on the contest to completely change the defensive and attacking structure.

Team list:

Halimat Adio
Sigrid Burger
Ashleigh Dekker
Michelle Drayne
Zara Everitt
Funmi Fadoju
Lindsay Keable
Assaindey Olivia Tinche
Lefebre Rademan
Ellie Rattu
Kira Rothwell
Isabel Stibbs
Emma Thacker
Adean Thomas
Monique Thompson