Hearts put out Blazin Angels with a win!

54-50 to Hearts!

Hearts got off to a strong start with great energy leading 17-9. This dipped a little at the end of the first quarter but they regained composure and kept ahead. Strong points of the game included presenting for the ball, rebounds at both ends and support on the centre pass. The defensive zone was used to great effect resulting in a few held balls!
Well deserved player to Molly who had a great game as GK, her and Pippa picked up so many turnovers and loose balls that resulted in the win!

Written by Lauren – Captain

Amazing game for Aces with a 48-19 win against OB Bullets

The team meshed amazingly well and controlled the game at our pace really setting the momentum of the game.

Had a brilliant first quarter where we were up by over 10!!! Even in the the windy and wet conditions

Using the back line pass combinations that we practiced in training we were able to convert on all the turn overs that Lydia and Katie intercepted.

There was great mid-court movement from Chloe, Pippa and Sarah through the third quarter increasing our lead!!

In the final quarter we started out strong with some incredible shots from both Gemma and Grace and ended the game ahead!!

Really strong game girls :))

Written by Izzie – Player

Wow Wow Wow Diamonds 💎 were on 🔥 against jaguars with a 37-29 win .
They rose to the challenge of their opponents and teamwork and skills shone through with great movement of the ball to the D, where the shots just kept coming.
Great to have you Freya back.
Well done to player Edie .
Fantastic game to watch and a very well deserved win !!

Written by Kim – Manager

Well BARNACLE BILL, the Alcester Queens have done it – a second win under our belts 🌟🥳🏆

The Queens started with a positive mindset, happy to be playing such a welcoming team. We went into the match open-minded, but strong and assertive in the knowledge that we could do this 💪🏼

Despite a 2-point lead to the Swans, Queens made a great start to the match in the first quarter. Guided by Sophie’s consistently strong and outstanding effort on centre court, she led the way for the rest of us to follow on strong, always relying on her to be absolutely everywhere on court (you’d never guess she’d been away from the team on an 8 day all-inclusive holiday) 😍

Still behind in the second quarter, Queens continued to persevere with some energy oozing all over the court: our attack continued to drive forward, Debbie constantly present to help out with those nifty quick passes, and Frankie never shy to drive into a space, always ready to support and shine with some sexy passes and shots. You could always count on Gem to be bouncing round the court, cleverly finding the space and always impressing with her admirable shots. Our snazztastic shooter, Amy, ever reliably in the D, always ready to take that crucial shot to keep us ticking up the scoresheet.

In the second half, we made way for the mighty strength of Antonia, never ceasing to surprise with her wow-worthy whacks of the ball, intercepting with sheer force, providing the team with unexpected advantages. Our defence was continuously held together by the other fabulous forces of nature in Stacey, Leanne and Beth, working as a trio to try as best we could to keep the pesky (yet strong) GA out that D!

In the third quarter, Queens finally took the lead with a two-point advantage. We kept things tight, slowed down play to a pace that suited us, and our hard work, drive and determination paid off, with the help of our enthusiastic sideline cheerleaders (shout out to our paparazzi, Lucinda), winning the game with a final score of 35-34 to Queens Though a small score margin, it was definitely a deserved win and I think we all shared in our pride for ourselves and one another.

Though I would argue everyone deserved Player of the Match, little ol’ me (Beffanny) took Player’s Player and the Queen that is Sophie took a very well-earned Captain’s Player 👏🏼

Written by Beth – Player

The first quarter saw Diamonds go in strong with some slick passing and some insane intercepts from the Q1 defence: Georgina, Edie and Freya. There was also some great work around the ‘D’ from the centre court players, Eliza and Chiara with the score for this quarter being 14-4 to Diamonds.

Q2 was end-to-end with the teams drawing with 8 goals each. The defence from Swans was tight which made the entire team work the ball around, and wait for the right pass to be made. Diamonds still showed some great skills and some swooping interceptions, especially from Georgina who was awarded coaches player!

Q3 the motivation and determination within the team picked up which resulted in a higher scoring quarter of 9-6 to Diamonds. There was some fantastic feeds from the centre court players into the ‘D’ which allowed the shooters Katie & Chloe to score great goals. Diamonds defence was tight and forced some errors from the opposition, which enabled the Diamonds to secure their goals. Due to Diamonds initially only having 7 players, we welcomed back Lydia who proved that she has definitely not lost any skill while being away from the team and it was lovely to have her back!

Q4 was a high scoring quarter with Diamonds scoring 19 goals, to Swans 6. This was by far the best team performance of the game, with there being endless interceptions, slick passing throughout, and some excellent goals from the shooters. Again, the movement around the ‘D’ was patient and efficient with some great feeds from the WA and C.

As a result of her speed, beautiful passing and incredible interceptions player of the match went to Chiara!!
Well done girls 🙂

Final score : 50-24 to Diamonds ♦️

Written by Chloe – Team Captain

I’m going to preface this report by saying it was actually a really good game. The team went flying into the first quarter, taking the lead.

Things then took a slight turn when we swapped ends in the second quarter and we were under the scrutiny of the other umpire (not ours, obvs) and shockingly everything that we did was called up, it was almost like we’ve never played a game of netball before. To name a few:

• Our shooters contacted more than the defenders ever did!
• Apparently our centre court players forgot they weren’t allowed in the D as they were called up for being offside so much!
• Three seconds is a lot shorter than we initially thought it was!
• It turns out you can’t move your feet when you have the ball, who knew!

So either our standard of play has dropped significantly, or there was a slight issue with the umpiring (or her eyesight at least).

Anyway we won the game, and, despite the above, it was a great game. Our flow and timing was good, we kept any interceptions safe and we adapted where we had to – in the circumstances…

Well done to everyone for great play and remaining resilient under the harsh conditions.

Shout out to Jeanette who won player, despite ALL of the contact against the defenders she was called up for 👏🏼

♣️ 51 – 39 Hotshots

Written by Ellie – Player

Aces match against Firefox Foxes was conceded by the opposition, so 5 points for a win and 25-0 on the score board! We will take that thank you.

Final score 73-35 to Alvechurch Pink Panthers against Hearts. It was a tough game to start as Hearts got slightly trapped by Panthers great zoning at times. However, over the course of the game, Hearts learnt to stick to shorter passes and work their way strategically through the court. Great advice from Natalie to keep moving through the zone and draw defenders away left pockets to receive the ball.
A game with a lot to learn but well done again for keeping cool and supporting each other on court.

Written by Lauren – Captain

Great game with a 51-19 win for Diamonds against Hotshot Hornets .
The first quarter saw a 17-3 lead by Diamonds. Their passing was slick throughout the game and included some great interceptions from several of the team Edie, Poppy B and Poppy M , Georgina and Chiara.
Q2 was wobbly with Chiara taking full brunt of a 3 person collision. She bravely got back up and carried on .
Q3 Chiara came off and Stacey from Queens offered to play up for Diamonds. Stacey slotted into the game seamlessly.
Q4 shots in the net were on fire 🔥 with some incredibly long distances resulting in praise from Hotshots . Eliza, despite her initial nerves at shooting, proved to herself she could do it.
Well done to Chloe on player of the match .
Thank you Stacey for supporting while Chiara rested .
Chiara we all hope you’re feeling better.

Written by Kim – Team Manager

Newly appointed coach Elaine tried lots of combinations, therefore everyone’s versatility and positive moves came together for some great match play.
Strong defence from Beth, Stacey, Lucinda and Debbie, detonated the court with their mighty interceptions and marking. This enabled the attacker, Sophie, to hold her own and get into some great spaces. Her accuracy in passing, aided Amy and Gem to feed the ball down the line, alongside Beth’s yo yo-ing ball skills up and down the court and never faulting under pressure. This massively helped to assist the shooters Hayley, Amy and Gem, be able to deliver some next level shots.
The final score did not do the girls justice!! It should have been a closer finish, however the opposition just did not give up their fast pace and motivation for the score to be in their favour 41-28.
Players player goes to Gem for amazing movement throughout the court, always fighting for the ball and incredible shooting. (Soph wrote this)
Captains player goes to Beth for discovering she can take flight in mid court and her fierce interceptions.
Can’t wait for the next match!!

Written by Gemma & Sophie – Players