The is the next in our series of blogs from within the The FIAT Netball Superleague that we will be bringing you this season. They will give you an insight into the lives and thoughts of players and coaches who you see every week but will give you a behind the scenes peak at their daily routines.
We have the thoughts of Northern Thunder Head Coach, Tracey Neville, on her team's success at Fast Net and their opening weekend FNSL victory over Yorkshire Jets. Also we hear from Jets' duo Joanne Walker and Rachel Shaw;
"It has been a busy week for Yorkshire Jets this week - two games and six sessions in four days - so for our first blog Rachel and I have decided to pool our resources and write a joint effort. The week started off with very tough game versus Northern Thunder. We were very impressed with the set up at Thunder and it was great to see so many people down supporting, even celebrities such as the Neville brothers and Paul Scholes."
"Thunder played well, and unfortunately we were unable to capitalise on our turnovers, leading to a 57-36 defeat. Tracey Neville’s girls will be provide a tough challenge for any team this season., and every member of the Jets learnt valuable lessons. On a lighter note, our second match of the week came when we travelled to Loughborough for a top-of-the-table clash in the BUCS northern league. It was a great victory for us, considering Loughborough’s defensive line up was the same Lightning defence we faced at Fast Net. After a hard fought game by both sides we were victorious 44-32 providing us with a much needed win in order to set us up nicely for the big game against Hertfordshire Mavericks."
"On friday night we face reigning champions Hertfordshire Mavericks in our brand new arena in Hull. We are very excited for our first home game, having sold a record number of tickets - it will be a change to play in front of a big home crowd. We believe tonight’s game will be a big decider as to who will make the top four teams this Superleague season, therefore makes it even more crucial. It will be great seeing Karen Atkinson coaching for Mavericks, we both have so much respect for her as a player and as the ex England captain and it will be interesting to see her coaching style throughout the game.
We’ve had so much support from social media this season and if you would like to find out more about Yorkshire jets follow us on @yorkshirejets, @RachShaw123 and @joanne2019
Rachel and Joanne
"Well the season has finally kicked off and what an exciting ‘derby’ weekend for all. The results of the weekend reflect the loss and recruitment of key players to franchises and will definitely make for an interesting season. For Northern Thunder our convincing victory over Yorkshire Jets shows the impact a sixty minute game can have on a team and the necessity to maintain and sustain performance. Having played YJ three times at Fast Net, we knew the impact YJ shooters could have on the game and our defence did a great job of denying them space and limiting them to only 4 goals in the 3rd quarter."
"Personally our team started very shaky and although I was displeased with the numerous errors we made throughout the game, we still pushed on as a team and in patches produced some spectacular netball. Sara Bayman was no doubt the player of the match for me, and having had the pleasure of watching her return to fitness during the World Netball Series she is undoubtedly a class act on and off the court. Fast Net has been a great introduction into the National calendar and personally has completely ‘boomeranged’ my family back into netball!"
"The NT team are a great bunch and I am happy to be wearing black and gold again. ‘Coach of the Year’ Suzy Chapman is a great person to work alongside. She has a unique way of looking at and learning the game and this has been an asset over the last few months in my development. We do have a lot in common as well, in particular we have a tendency to make words up during team talks, the ‘NEVMAN’ dictionary, something that our squad (thank you Bayman & Dovey!) are quick to jump on."
"NT see the return of Laura Malcolm and Krista Enziano to the side and the recruitment of Cobden and import ‘Nelly.’ The return of our captain Karen Greig to the team has finally arrived (something she is reminding me of daily!) and will be looking to be part of the squad that travel to Team Bath next week. This creates further options throughout the court for me as a coach, something I am going to have to expose over the next couple months in our preparations to get into the top phase of the competition. The new layout of the Superleague this year does not leave you much room for error and every game is going to be tough for all, not only to get the win but to ensure that our goal difference is kept relatively high as well."
"Overall, NT have definitely grown as a team over the last few months on and off the court and their dedication to want improve on their performance on a weekly basis is something we as a team are looking to do."
Tracey
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