Netball Round Up: Murray Edwards On The March

It may be all change in the world of college netball. Murray Edwards have posted some dominating performances in recent weeks to suggest they could make a claim for top spot. We bring you the latest from the hard courts:

Downing 21-30 Murray Edwards

It seems that the secret behind Murray Edwards success is team bonding. They have created a lively and friendly atmosphere which has evidently allowed them to relax on-court. There is no bitchiness. After a dodgy opening loss to Newnham, the team have used this environment to pull together and go on the march. It has been helped by having quality within the team – their Goal Attack is a feature in the Blues set-up.

Her potency is reflected in Murray Edwards scoring ratio – they have thrashed Queens’ 18-2 before going on to dispatch St John’s 22-11. Downing were the latest victims to fall on the weekend, succumbing to 21-30 defeat. Three stonking victories on the trot has clearly made teams start to pay attention – both John’s and Downing were both surprised by the level of Murray Edwards’ performance. It seems that attention is well justified.

We can expect more competitive matches in the coming weeks

Queens’ 27-11 Trinity Hall

Queens’ were able to recover from their mauling at the hands of Murray Edwards by posting a commanding win against Trinity Hall. In an engaging and hard fought match, Queens’ were able to put their season back on track with a dominating performance from the start.

Crucial to Queens’ performance was the ability to keep a tight defense which meant that Tit Hall’s talented Goal Attack and Goal Shooter only had a few opportunities to get their shots in. It meant at the other end Queens’ were allowed to take advantage of every available opportunity with exceptional centre court performances from Lottie Mungavin and Abi May. They were able to provide a constant feed into the shooters, Becky Lawrence and Hannah Cahill, who could rack up the points. A last quarter reshuffle from Queens’ opened up the court for Tit Hall to come back slightly, but the groundwork had already been done, and it was a convincing victory for Queens’.

Newnham 11-5 St Johns

Newnham had to work hard for this victory with the opening  quarter a close fought affair; St John’s were unable to convert the first centre pass, giving Newnham the opportunity to take the lead which they eventually took.  However, Newnham could not take a strangle hold of the quarter with both teams struggling for composure – a lot of shots failed to be converted. In the second quarter Newnham were more clinical and managed to convert their turnover ball, scoring 4 goals to St John’s 2, which helped push daylight between the two sides.

Newnham were able to evade the John’s defense which enabled GS Charlie Thorne to put her shots up with the help of Blues Captain Hannah Pennicott, who was playing GA. John’s showed no signs of giving up though with Laura Gibson  taking her opportunities at the other end to keep John’s in it by the end of the third quarter. Some good interceptions from the Newnham mid-court and defensive players in the last quarter meant a comeback was prevented and secured Newnham the victory.

It seems that the league is full of competitive match ups and it will take something special to stake the claim of champions.

Photo courtesy of Katrina Hewitt