Team Northumbria head to South Wales intent on spoiling Celtic Dragons’ return home after the Commonwealth Games.
Dragons are intent on earning their third Vitality Superleague win of the season, while Northumbria made a difficult start to the 2018 season and have yet to win.
Kiwi coach TeAroha Keenan, though, believes her team will break their duck at the Sport Wales National Centre in Cardiff on Saturday (4pm).
“We are quite clearly good enough to go to the Dragons and win as long as we make more of the right decisions,” says Keenan, who was fuming after Northumbria’s 47-43 defeat against Severn Stars in their first fixture after the Commonwealth Games.
“Defensively we were excellent and in the final quarter won enough ball and did enough to disrupt Stars to win the game.
“If I was one of our defenders I’d feel frustrated that we didn’t do enough with that possession to go on and come out on top.
“It came down to a lack of composure in the attacking third. We didn’t shoot the ball well enough and too many key passes went astray.
“But I saw enough in the Stars game – just as I have done in previous games – to suggest we can win a match in Superleague.”
TN pulled back a seven-goal deficit to just a single goal with four and a half minutes left, but momentum waned as the hosts lost their way in the attacking third and allowed Stars to snatch the win.
TN remain rooted to the foot of the table and are the only Superleague side without a win this season.
They won the first quarter against Stars 13-12, but then lost the second 11-14 and third 10-15. Northumbria edged the final quarter 9-6, but fell short.
Of the three TN players returning from the Commonwealth Games only Hayley Mulheron made the starting seven.
The veteran Scot partnered Aussie rookie Toni Anderson in defence with Malawi’s Loreen Ngwira on the bench.
Northern Ireland shooter Lisa Bowman was held in reserve as Keenan went with the all Kiwi attack that started the season.
Chiara Semple and Tamsin Moala have experienced a mixed campaign in the shooting circle, but the New Zealand duo initially looked back to their best against the Stars.
Semple’s five goal burst saw the hosts take a 13-12 first quarter lead after trailing 12-8.
Keenan stuck with the same seven and it looked like a smart move as TN opened up a four-goal lead within the first two minutes of the second quarter.
Moala suddenly came to the fore with a flurry of coolly taken goals in the face of some physical Stars defence.
It was Semple, though, who kept TN in touch towards the end of the half only for the visitors to take a two-goal lead into the break.
Keenan opted to shuffle her pack at the outset of the third period Semple moving to goal attack and player of the match Anderson switching to wing defence.
Ngwira slotted in at goal keeper and Bowman provided TN with a physical presence up front.
It was Stars who started the second half the brighter with goal shooter Ellie Cardwell a constant – and consistent – threat.
The visitors opened up their largest lead of the match at 35-29 with six minutes of the third period to play.
And not for the first time this season TN had it all to do as they trailed 41-34 heading into the final quarter.
Keenan made wholesale changes in a bid to save the game with Paige Kindred and Iman Thomas both given an opportunity to impress.
The influential Anderson, enjoying one of her best games of the season, moved back to goal defence and Moala returned to the attack.
But Stars stayed strong in the face of sustained late pressure to close out a second win of 2018 and heap the pressure on TN ahead of Saturday’s trip to Cardiff.
Celtic Dragons have certainly improved under the guidance of Australian coach Julie Hoornweg, winning two of their three games just before the Commonwealth Games break.
The focus now is ensuring Dragons keep that winning feeling when the Northumbrian team come to Cardiff.
Celtic Dragons squad: G Rowe, CL Moseley, B Dyke, A Varey, S Drane (capt), N Jones, K Morgan, F Davies, K Jones, S Llewelyn, E Roberts, L Thomas.
Vitality Netball Superleague fixtures this weekend
April
Friday 27 Wasps v Manchester Thunder (7pm)
Saturday 28 UWS Sirens v Surrey Storm (2pm), Celtic Dragons v Team Northumbria (4pm), Severn Stars v Loughborough Lightning (6pm).
Sunday 29: benecosMavericks v Team Bath (5.30pm)
Celtic Dragons Tickets are now on sale. Head to Ticketline to get yours: https://tinyurl.com/ycl6px69
2018 Vitality Netball Superleague
Celtic Dragons fixtures and results
February
Monday 12: Celtic Dragons 49, benecosMavericks 61
Saturday 17: Celtic Dragons 35, Team Bath 54
Saturday 24: Loughborough Lightning 69, Celtic Dragons 45
Monday 26: Celtic Dragons 55, Surrey Storm 50
March
Saturday 3: Manchester Thunder v Celtic Dragons (postponed, rearranged for June 11, 7pm)
Saturday 10: Celtic Dragons 49, Severn Stars 40
Sunday 18: Wasps Netball 74, Celtic Dragons 32
April
Saturday 28: Celtic Dragons v Team Northumbria, 4pm
May
Friday 4: Team Bath v Celtic Dragons, 7:30pm
Monday 7: Surrey Storm v Celtic Dragons, 3pm
Monday 14: Celtic Dragons v Loughborough Lightning, 7pm (Live on Sky)
Saturday 19: benecosMavericks v Celtic Dragons, TBC
Friday 25: Celtic Dragons v Manchester Thunder, 7pm
Monday 28: UWS Sirens v Celtic Dragons, 7pm
June
Saturday 2: Team Northumbria v Celtic Dragons, 6pm
Saturday 9: Celtic Dragons v Wasps Netball, 4pm
Saturday 16: Celtic Dragons v UWS Sirens, 4pm
Monday 25: Severn Stars v Celtic Dragons, 7:30pm
Vitality Superleague Table
| TEAM | P | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS | |
| 1 | WASPS | 8 | 8 | 0 | 529 | 346 | 183 | 24 |
| 2 | HERTS | 7 | 6 | 1 | 414 | 369 | 45 | 18 |
| 3 | TEAM BATH | 6 | 5 | 1 | 324 | 279 | 45 | 15 |
| 4 | MANCHESTER | 6 | 5 | 1 | 326 | 294 | 32 | 15 |
| 5 | LOUGHBOROUGH | 7 | 4 | 3 | 400 | 358 | 42 | 12 |
| 6 | CELTIC DRAGONS | 6 | 2 | 4 | 265 | 348 | -83 | 6 |
| 7 | SURREY STORM | 6 | 1 | 5 | 314 | 347 | -33 | 3 |
| 8 | SEVERN STARS | 7 | 1 | 6 | 341 | 377 | -36 | 3 |
| 9 | SIRENS | 6 | 1 | 5 | 259 | 336 | -77 | 3 |
| 10 | NORTHUMBRIA | 7 | 0 | 7 | 306 | 424 | -118 | 0 |