Round 6 results:
London Pulse 61-56 Manchester Thunder
London Mavericks 45-55 Loughborough Lightning
Birmingham Panthers 71-70 Nottingham Forest
Cardiff Dragons 44-60 Leeds Rhinos
My highlights:
- In the clash of the titans, Thunder push Pulse to the edge, but the London side remain undefeated with six wins from six games.
- Lightning climb to third position in the table after they beat Mavericks.
- Panthers earn their first win of the season after a dramatic one-goal win against Forest, who are lacking in consistency.
- Rhinos produce a solid team performance against Cardiff Dragons, who need a serious shakeup as they are yet to get a point, let alone a win.
Natasha’s team of round 6:
GK: Jasmine Brown (Birmingham Panthers)
GD: Funmi Fadoju (London Pulse)
WD: Beth Cobden (Loughborough Lightning)
C: Amy Carter (Manchester Thunder)
WA: Emma Rayner (Manchester Thunder)
GA: Emma Thacker (London Mavericks)
GS: Anya Williams (Manchester Thunder)
Round 7 fixtures:
Friday 25th April, 19:00: Loughborough Lightning vs Birmingham Panthers
Predicted winner: Loughborough Lightning
Players to watch: Ella Clarke and Jasmine Brown
Friday 25th April, 19:00: Leeds Rhinos vs Nottingham Forest
Predicted winner: Nottingham Forest
Players to watch: Geva Mentor and Rolene Streutker
Sunday 27th April, 18:00: London Pulse vs Cardiff Dragons
Predicted winner: London Pulse
Players to watch: Gracie Smith and Bethan Dyke
Monday 28th April, 19:00: Manchester Thunder vs London Mavericks
Predicted winner: Manchester Thunder
Players to watch: Elia McCormick and Ellie Rattu
Natasha’s insights:
As we reach the halfway point in the season, (yes, already, I know!) the split in the table is clear to see. The gap between London Mavericks and Nottingham Forest, 4th and 5th place respectively, is five points. That will take two wins to close. It was delightful to watch Panthers rejoice in their first win, but they will need much more of that fighting spirit. Cardiff Dragons really do need a win for their confidence, but with London Pulse on the horizon that seems distant right now. At the top of the table, London Pulse have also opened up a five point gap on second place Manchester Thunder, who share the same number of points as defending champions Loughborough Lightning.
Pleasingly, the NSL games this season have been much more competitive so far, thanks to the Super Shot, and I like the addition of gaining one point for a gap of five goals or less come the final whistle. However, having seen the standard of the Australian Suncorp Super Netball League, elite netball in England still has a way to go to catch up and this is not helped by the dismal streaming efforts of Sky Sports; the BBC is the much better broadcasting partner and I would love to see more games go to the BBC and other public platforms next season.
You can catch the NSL action throughout the season on Youtube, Sky Sports and BBC Sport.
Additionally, if you want to hear more from me, you can head over to @tash_talker1 on Instagram to find my viewpoints and predictions!
