NETBALL: IT PROVED to be an easter weekend to remember for Wasps Netball who recorded back-to-back wins against Team Northumbria and Hertfordshire Mavericks to move up to second in the Vitality Netball Superleague.
WASPS Netball secured back-to-back home wins for the first time with a convincing 68-46 victory against Team Northumbria on Good Friday at the Ricoh Arena.
And they followed that up with a fourth consecutive win with a dominant display away from home against Hertfordshire Mavericks on Easter Monday, earning them a 51-58 victory.
Tamsin Greenway’s side now sit second in the Vitality Netball Superleague – keeping pressure on league leaders Loughborough Lightning as they enter the second half of the season.
“Our team is definitely gelling together now, the partnerships on the court are starting to work well and putting in some very solid performances,” said Wasps director of netball Tamsin Greenway.
“Next up we will be playing Sirens back at the Ricoh Arena and we’ll be focused on cementing our top four spot as we go into this crucial period of the season.”
Greenway was impressed with her team’s defensive performance on Friday against Team Northumbria and the second half display which saw Wasps build an unassailable lead.
Greenway took to the court again and says the physicality of the game meant players needed to be rested in the final quarter.
She said: “Defensively we were outstanding all over the court in this game – we disrupted Northumbria’s play and that was huge for us.
“We started really well and we pushed on when we needed to, I thought the third quarter performance was absolutely brilliant and allowed us to relax towards the end.
“I think we’re growing as a team, we haven’t had a chance to cement our starting seven but we’re finally getting to do that now and the benefits are showing.”
Wasps Netball produced another dominant display on Monday at Hertfordshire Mavericks, where Greenway’s side began to pull away from Mavericks in the second quarter and maintained the winning margin throughout the match.
“It was a good win, very satisfying and I was really pleased with how the players came through a tough start to win,” Greenway added.
“Mavericks never let up, we knew they’d be gunning for us at home and that’s exactly what they did.
“Although the scoreline wasn’t huge, it still felt quite comfortable with the way we were playing – we were doing some brilliant stuff out there and played some very smart netball against a quality young team.”
Wasps Netball’s next fixture will see them face Sirens on at the Ricoh Arena on Sunday, April 23 (2.00pm centre-pass) – as they look to make it three home wins in a row.
Tickets for Wasps Netball vs Sirens on April 23 start from £10 for adults while under-10s go free, and can be purchased from www.waspsnetball.co.uk/tickets.
