A REMARKABLE four-quarter effort from Celtic Dragons has seen the Welsh side pick up its first Vitality Netball Superleague (VNSL) victory of the 2022 season. The Dragons took out Severn Stars on the road, winning three of the four quarters and picking up the full three points from the match. Given it was a bottom two clash, the 58-42 result saw the Dragons leapfrog the Stars on the table, with the 20-goal differential resulting in a 32-goal swing, with the Dragons now up by 12 goals.

It was clear from the outset that the VNSL’s sole Welsh team had travelled to the University of Worchester Arena ready to play. Coming up against a Stars outfit that had not won since Round 1, the Dragons fancied their chances despite their form on the road. Bursting out of the blocks early, the Dragons piled on 16 goals to 10 to race out to a six-goal lead. With a level second term, the visitors maintained that advantage heading into half-time to be 29-23 ahead.

In their best quarter for the year, the Dragons fired at both ends in the third, scoring 16 goals themselves, whilst conceding just seven to their opposition. This opened up a 15-goal lead by the last change, and the visiting fans and those watching could sense the winless drought was about to be broken. Not taking any chances, the Dragons fought right to the end, beating the Stars in the final term by a goal (13-12) and getting up by 16 overall, 58-42.

Goal defender Annabel Roddy earned Player of the Match honours for her circle work, picking up a massive five intercepts, as well as three deflections and six turnovers. She teamed up well with Shaquanda Greene-Noel (three intercepts, three rebounds and six turnovers), whilst up the other end, the shooting combination just clicked. Georgia Rowe fired off 42 goals from 46 attempts, whilst Lefébre Rademan recorded two rebounds on her way to 15 goals from 21 attempts. In the midcourt, Shona O’Dwyer was influential with 22 feeds.

For the Stars, Summer Artman tried hard in goal keeper with three intercepts, two deflections, four rebounds and seven turnovers, teaming up with Lucy Herdman (four deflections, one rebound and two turnovers). The shooting duo of Paige Reed (30 goals from 34 attempts) and Katie Harris (11 from 14) did their best, with Bethan Dyke picking up a team-high 16 feeds in centre to go with three deflections, one intercept and two turnovers.

Both sides have a quick turnaround to play on Friday night, with Severn Stars hosting Leeds Rhinos back at the University of Worchester Arena, whilst Celtic Dragons will eye off back-to-back wins when they travel to the Coventry Building Society Area to face the other bottom three side in Wasps.