Stratford Ladies Purples crowned league champions

STRATFORD Ladies Purples secured the Stratford Netball League championship with a narrow 36-30 victory over Comets Tornadoes.

The match was tight from the first centre pass, with neither team making many mistakes at all and the first interval saw Stratford leading 9-6.

Comets stayed focused and drew level at 14-14 at half-time.

Each team made good use of their subs, bringing fresh legs on to the court throughout the game.

By the third interval Stratford had got their nose ahead again by just one goal at 24-23.

A thoroughly enjoyable match for all the spectators, the final quarter saw Stratford nudge ahead.

Comets kept pressing and whilst the gap in the score began to widen, it was as close as could be on court, with Stratford just managing to capitalise on a few more opportunities than their opponents.

Comets’ Molly Paish then took a bad fall with just seconds of the match to play and incurred a painful ankle injury.

Both teams decided to allow the score to stand and finished the match at that point.

After getting their first win of the season from their previous match, Pink Ladies brought the curtain down on their season with a 44-29 defeat at the hands of visiting Thunderbirds, who had only six players for the final match of the season.

Great shooting from Jo Haslam for Pink Ladies kept them within half of Thunderbirds winning score, getting a point on the board for the second match in a row.

Elsewhere, Trust Helping Hands finished their campaign in fourth after securing a 43-22 victory over Shooters Sparks.

Trust had Kay Dawson back from injury and was supported by Holly Jackson and Vicky Lacey, with the trio scoring some impressive goals.

Bex Heath was also on form in the shooting circle for Sparks with some great shots and excellent movement around the circle.

Sparks showed structure in their game and made several interceptions throughout to keep the pressure on Trust and take a point home.

Player of the match awards

Pink Ladies - Umpires’ player: Charlotte Brooks; Players’ player: Jo Haslam.

Thunderbirds - Umpires’ and players’ player: Carolyn Stacey.

Stratford Ladies Purples - Umpires’ player: Katie Barton; Players’ player: Laura Urquhart.

Comets Tornadoes - Umpires’ and players’ player: Molly Paish.

Trust Helping Hands - Umpires’ player: Leonie Green; Players’ player: Holly Jackson.

Shooters Sparks -Umpires’ and players’ player: Anna Philpott.