Grangetown hosted New Cambell in their second game – and second home fixture – of the new Prem 1 campaign.
 
The visitors had been magnificent in last season’s corresponding encounter, and have arguably been the best side to have visited the north east since Grangetown began competing at a national level.
 
For this game however, both clubs were affected by international call-ups for the Netball Europe Open Championships which were taking place in Northern Ireland. Four of Grangetown’s squad were representing the Republic of Ireland, including regular defensive pairing Genevieve Slater and Katie Walton, who was playing for the first time under her married name of Knox. New Cambell were without Northern Ireland’s Michelle Drayne as well as teenage defender Funmi Fadoju who was making her full England debut – hopefully the start of a long and successful international career for this outstanding young athlete.
 
With a depleted defence, Jenny Mrozik played despite struggling with a knee injury and Rebecca Thompson made her Grangetown debut at goal defence. Grangetown vice-captain Ria Small took her place in the starting seven after scans revealed a cheekbone injury sustained the previous week was not a fracture as had been first feared; and Brie Grierson’s availability was a major boost to Grangetown’s attacking potential.
 
Both sides had suffered round 1 losses, New Cambell to newly-promoted Hucclecote and Grangetown to Tameside, so even at this early stage of the season, the game represented an important opportunity to register that crucial first win.

​In a fast-paced opening, the two sides traded four goals before Paige McCalla’s long shot was followed by a wayward Grangetown centre pass, from which Rochelle Rhodes netted after taking a good catch under pressure. The visitors then converted from their next restart to take an early three-goal lead.
 
Ash Neal then found her attacking partner Abbie Le Brocq unmarked for the score, only for Paige and Rochelle to almost replicate the move at the opposite end of the court.
 
The Grangetown attacking trio of Abbie, Ash and Brie then combined superbly to reduce the arrears, and when New Cambell were penalised for delaying their centre pass, Brie’s looped pass was converted by Ash. Abbie levelled the scores before Grangetown turned over possession and an assured long-range effort from Abbie edged the home side in front for the first time.
 
Paige and Rochelle then combined well to narrow the gap and when Grangetown lost possession, Rochelle collected a rebound to being parity to proceedings.
 
8-8 became 12-12 with Vicky Rees producing a fine turnover and Abbie superbly gathering a bullet pass from Brie to score. Lovely interplay between Paige and Ellie Gibbons saw the wing attack feed Rochelle to edge the visitors in front.
 
Ash levelled, before Ellie delivered another fine pass to set up her shooter. At the other end of the court, Lindsay Keable nudged the ball out of play, but despite intense pressure from both visiting defenders, Abbie did well to claim the ball and find the net.
 
Jenny Mrozik picked off a speculative pass, and Ria Small bounced the ball to Ash whose successful shot rounded off a fine move.
 
Ellie’s neat turn saw her spin past her marker to set up New Cambell’s next goal, but a wayward pass then hit the wing attack in the back to give Grangetown possession. Abbie appeared to have the ball knocked out of her hand when attempting a shot, but the umpire ruled against the home side.
 
New Cambell then made a rare handling error to hand possession back to Grangetowm. Ash scored, but great strength under pressure by Rochelle was rewarded by the goal that separated the sides at the end of a pulsating opening quarter.
 
Grangetown immediately put the visitors under pressure, but New Cambell were comfortable in possession and were able to extend their lead to four goals before Ash’s delayed pass fooled both defenders and Abbie opened Grangetown’s account.
 
Lindsay then got a hand to a pass and earned possession as the ball touched Abbie on the way out of court. An overthrown pass bobbled into the grateful hands of Grangetown captain Vicky Rees, but the subsequent shot was missed, Lindsay collected the rebound and, after a quick transition down the court, Rochelle continued her impressive form under the net.
 
New Cambell’s lead fluctuated between three and four goals, but the best move did not actually result in a goal. Centre Beth Dix, who made her Super League debut for Wasps in March, exchanged passes with three separate team mates before feeding into the circle when the opening appeared. Unfortunately, an attacking contact call denied New Cambell the goal that Beth’s skill deserved, but after Ash had netted for Grangetown, Beth again showed excellent composure to deal with more intense defensive pressure and deliver a telling ball for another goal.
 
Paige then made a crucial contribution in mid-court, managing to sneak in front of Vicky to steal possession. The resulting goal was cancelled out by Abbie’s lovely disguised pass to Ash, and Vicky then completed another turnover from which Ash scored.
 
Ash ‘s next goal narrowed the gap to just one, but New Cambell doubled their advantage with a well-taken goal, although Jenny was unfortunate not to claim possession with a spectacular attempted flying interception.
 
Beth read a pass from her opposite number, but Ellie’s pass rebounded off the post and back to Grangetown. Abbie reduced the arrears and the next two goals were shared; but Grangetown missed an opportunity to level the scores and the half-time hooter sounded with New Cambell 30-31 to the good.
 
It had been an excellent half, played at a furious pace, with both sides showing attacking flair and great defensive intensity.
 
Abbie scored at the start of the third quarter, but as well as scoring from their next three centre passes, Linday and Steph Collard both secured turnovers and in a matter of moments, New Cambell were five goals in front. Ash bounced a pass across court to Ria and rushed into the circle to collect the return feed from her centre and score.
 
Grangetown continued to battle, but struggled to make inroads into the visitors’ lead. Brie was having a fine game at wing attack and she set up a number of chances, but after Ria’s interception allowed Ash to score, Lindsay got a touch to a pass and managed a backhand flick to a team mate to ensure the goal against the centre pass was immediately cancelled out.
 
At 35-43, New Cambell were very much in charge, but by the end of the period, the lead had been halved as Grangetown rallied once again. Rebecca Thompson, who was having a solid debut, was unlucky to be penalised as Ellie (now at goal attack) missed a lay-up shot, and when Abbie netted at the second attempt, the scoreboard read 42-46 as the hooter brought the quarter to a close.
 
Grangetown made a great start to the final period, with Rebecca and Vicky effecting a turnover and Ash’s movement attracting the attention of both defenders, which allowed Ria to loop the ball to an unmarked Abbie.
 
The lead was down to one after Abbie scored again, but Beth’s feed was well-collected by Rochelle who made no mistake with her shot. Ash netted from distance before Jenny claimed possession for the home side. Sensational play from Brie and Ash saw the new Manchester Thunder signing level the scores.
 
The momentum seemed to be all with Grangetown, but their next attack came to an abrupt end when Ash was penalised for what sounded like obstruction, despite no other player being close to her. It was a decision that baffled players and spectators alike, but New Cambell took full advantage before a well-disguised feed from Ellie to Rochelle gave the visitors a two-goal cushion.
 
Grangetown managed to secure possession only to be penalised by a “not set” call on the backline. The resulting goal was quickly cancelled out and Grangetown again got to within one goal; but hard as they fought, the hosts were unable to draw level and with time starting to run out, New Cambell stayed strong, punished every error and by full time, the visitors ran out winners 56-63.
 
It had been a thoroughly entertaining game, and although Grangetown’s performance was much-improved from their opening fixture, the final result was still disappointing. For New Cambell, they showed composure at the most crucial moments and deserved the win; but the final margin of seven goals belies how close a match this actually was.
 
Brie Grierson was Grangetown’s best performer on the day, but the player of the match was undoubtedly New Cambell’s Beth Dix, whose movement and passing were of the highest quality.

Grangetown’s started their second campaign in National Premier League 1 with a 48-54 home defeat to Tameside.
 
The two sides had finished fourth and fifth respectively last season, with Grangetown winning both fixtures; but in a hard-fought, physical encounter, it was the visitors who deservedly claimed the victory.
 
It had been a busy few months both on and off the court for Grangetown, with Ash Neal signing for reigning Super League champions Manchester Thunder, and Hannah Raine representing the England under 21 Nets squad in the recent world cup. Away from netball, Ireland defender Katie Walton got married during the summer, and her fellow international defender Genevieve Slater returned to the squad having given birth to a daughter in May.
 
The only new addition to the Grangetown squad for the opening fixture was Niamh McCall, a teenager who has played Super League for Strathclyde Sirens, as well as being a member of the Scotland squad for July’s World Cup.
 
The Tameside line-up included Beccy Hoult and Ally Thomas, who both had produced superb performances in last season’s corresponding fixture; and defender Paige Kindred, a former Super League team mate of Ash Neal at Team Northumbria.

The opening six goals were shared with Hannah Raine’s superb pass finding Abbie le Brocq free inside the Tameside circle. Hannah Williams and Ally Thomas combined well to bring the scores level, before Beccy Hoult’s feed to Ally provided the first goal against an opposition centre pass.
 
The teams then continued to trade goals, but a Grangetown miss was regathered by the visitors’ defence and the subsequent successful shot made it 6-9 to Tameside. Grangetown immediately replied following a Jenny Mrozik rebound, as Hannah Raine’s no-look pass to Ash Neal was bounced back to the Grangetown wing attack, who fed Abbie for the score.
 
Another incisive pass from Beccy Hoult set up Brogan Slicker, and Tameside extended their lead after Abbie was penalised after gathering a long ball under pressure from two defenders.
 
Ash Neal then produced the quarter’s best moment when she looked left, but passed right and found Abbie totally unmarked under the net. Ally Thomas netted right on the hooter and Tameside led 13-15 after the first 15 minutes.
 
The second period started with Ash netting from close range, before Abbie brought the scores level after gathering a rebound from possession gained by Katie Walton’s interception.
 
Frustratingly, a penalty from the Grangetown centre pass gifted the ball to Tameside, who took full advantage by scoring four unanswered goals. Ash Neal then drew the home side to within one goal by converting her next three shots, despite being put under pressure by a particularly physical visiting defensive unit.
 
Brogan Slicker was next to find the net, after Ally’s superb movement had attracted the attention of both Grangetown defenders, leaving the goal shooter completely free to continue her excellent scoring run.
 
Vicky Rees then produced a fantastic interception from a penalty, and her intervention was rewarded with a goal from Ash Neal. However, the Grangetown shooters were then guilty of a number of misses, whilst their Tameside counterparts were almost flawless in the circle and a one-goal lead was soon extended to five.
 
Whilst Grangetown struggled to cope with the visitors’ defensive intensity, their cause wasn’t helped by a number of poor decisions from the umpires; but the Tameside defenders simply played to the whistle and did a tremendous job of unsettling the home attack.
 
Tameside took a four-goal lead into half-time and their shooting accuracy was very much the difference between the teams.
 
Grangetown Head Coach Gel Williams made a number of changes during the interval; Niamh McCall was introduced at wing attack for her debut, Alice Currie replaced Abbie, and Gen Slater came on to partner Jenny Mrozik.
 
Grangetown started well and quickly halved the arrears, but Tameside showed great composure in creating and converting a number of opportunities. Twice Grangetown were penalised from their centre pass and twice Tameside moved the ball down court for their shooters to convert; and having missed a shot to make it a one-point game, Grangetown suddenly found themselves seven adrift.
 
The home side rallied and played some of their best netball with Niamh McCall and Ash Neal producing some excellent interplay to set up two quick goals. When Ria Small’s perfectly-weighted long feed found Alice Currie, the deficit was back to two. Ally Thomas was then forced to take a shot from long-range, Gen Slater gathered the rebound from a rare miss, but Grangetown spurned the subsequent opportunity, and it turned out to be a crucial miss as Brogan scored the next three goals to ensure Tameside maintained their four-goal advantage going into the final period.
 
To an extent the final quarter mirrored the previous 15 minutes as Grangetown kept pressing and fought their way back into the game, only for another vital miss to hand the initiative back to the visitors. The Tameside attacking trio of Hoult, Williams and Thomas were excellent throughout; they were quick around the court, but equally prepared to take their time and wait for the opening; and when the final hooter sounded, the visitors were good value for their 48-54 victory.
 
From Grangetown’s perspective the result was obviously disappointing, but there was much to enjoy and plenty of encouragement for the season ahead. Ash Neal was Grangetown’s best player on the day, but no one could argue with Ally Thomas being named Player of the Match, and this is what she had to say just a few minutes after the end of the game.
 
“I think we got the win today because we were patient. We only had eight players in the squad, which isn’t ideal for an away game, but collectively we were patient and we let the ball do the work.
 
“Some of us have played together for years now; it really works for us, as we know how each other plays, and where we’re going to be around the court…
 
“It was a physical game; netball always is, and it’s getting more physical and contested every year. It’s part of the game and we just have to get used to it...
 
“Overall, it’s a great start, but it’s a long season and we’ve got a lot of work to do. We’ll just keep pushing and trying to grind out the wins.
 
The Grangetown perspective came from Genevieve Slater: “I had a little girl back in May, so it’s probably about eight months since I last played for Grangetown. It’s hard to work on match practice without playing, but we’ve just got to get out on court, work hard and push through.
 
“It feels so good to be back at Grangetown. The girls here are brilliant and obviously it’s hard for me to get over here [from Dublin] and train with them, but I always get such a lovely welcome when I come over. I think this is my fifth season here, so I’m definitely one of the oldies now; but I love it.
 
“We are disappointed with the loss. For a team that can’t always train together consistently, we did have some great passages of play; but we just made too many silly mistakes. We’d score a couple of goals on the run but unfortunately we didn’t keep our foot on the pedal when we needed to.”