Congratulations to Cumberland Premier Team!

The Premier Team travelled to Loughborough over the bank holiday weekend to fight for a place in National Premier League 2.

Match Reports

Cumberland 47 Poole Aquarians 38

Having played Poole twice in the regular Prem 3 season, Cumberland were prepared for a tough and physical encounter. Goal Shooter, Kirsty Smith, held her space extremely well in the circle and converted brilliantly. Goal Attack, Diane Antonovich, made life tough for her opponent by quick sharp movements in and outside the circle. Laura Jane Brennan continued her great form at WA providing some great feeds into the circle. Meanwhile, Becky Swarbrick, proved extremely tough for the opposing Centre with tight defence and always being an option in attack. Wing defence, Georgina Partridge, did a fabulous job at keeping the WA off the circle and pressuring the ball which created numerous opportunities for intercepts. Lois Tucker made her come back from an unfortunate back injury, turning loads of ball and bringing the ball down nicely to the attacking end. Circle defenders, Polini Langi and Natalie Cowie, were a strong combination in the circle, switching well and dominating the rebounds. Great start to the play offs.

Sussex Thunder 31 Cumberland 47

Not knowing much about the Prem 2 opposition was an exciting prospect for Cumberland. From the first jog in the warm up, the girls were pumped and hungry for a win. This motivation continued throughout the entire match. The first two quarters were outstanding with Natalie Cowie and Polini Langi making things difficult for the shooters restricting them to 4 goals in each quarter. Their life was made easy by the fantastic pressure over the ball from Lois Tucker (WD). Playing her second game at Centre, Becky Swarbrick’s hard work paid off with intercepts and patient feeding into the circle. Claire Risk had a star performance in the second half at WD with several clean intercepts and perfect timing and driving towards the attackers. LJ was excellent at WA with sharp feeding and fast pace. Once again, Diane Antonovich and Kirsty Smith worked well together out maneuvering their defenders and finishing off magnificently.

Dudley Leisure 36 Cumberland 41

Although Cumberland had two wins under their belt, they wanted nothing else but to finish undefeated. Feeling physically exhausted from the previous two matches was soon to be forgotten after the first whistle. Charlie Glynn started remarkably at GA fulfilling her job by converting the precise goals. Her speed and drive was amazing and she combined well with veteran shooter, Kirsty Smith. The team lead convincingly after the first quarter but a lapse in the second quarter saw the score even at half time. Following an inspirational talk from coach, Krista Priscott, and a few encouraging words from the Captain (maybe a couple of obscenities which won’t be repeated) the girls came out refocused pulling the lead back. However, Dudley were not going down with a fight taking the lead by 3 at one point. Cumberland dug deep, taking clean intercepts and finishing off much needed goals. The support from the bench and crowd lifted the team to a well earned victory. Prem 2 here we come!

For more information http://www.englandnetball.co.uk/competitions/premier-2/Play_Offs

Polini Langi
Captain Premier Team
Cumberland Netball Club
www.cumberlandnetball.com