Vitality Superleague: Round 12 preview
Strathclyde Sirens vs Manchester Thunder is live on Sky Sports Mix and Action on Monday from 7.15pm and will be streamed live on the Sky Sports YouTube channel
Tuesday 2 April 2019 15:56, UK
Round 12 arrives in town with the top five teams in the Vitality Netball Superleague table being separated by just three points and there is a very exciting addition to Sky Sports' netball coverage over the next two weeks.
Manchester Thunder's clash with Strathclyde Sirens on Monday, April 1 is live on Sky Sports Mix and Action and will be streamed live on the Sky Sports YouTube channel.
You do not have to be a Sky subscriber to watch the stream, anybody can access it via the Sky Sports website or by downloading the Sky Sports app. The Round 13 match between Lightning and Storm will also be shown on both platforms too.
Across the board players, head coaches and fans alike are all hailing this Superleague season as the toughest, closest and most exciting yet so there is no better time to tune in to Sky Sports' coverage, on air and online.
- iOS users: Download the Sky Sports app from the App Store
- Android users: Download the Sky Sports app from the Play Store
Round 12 features two of the sides locked on 24 points, Loughborough Lightning and Saracens Mavericks, duelling while Wasps Netball will try and get back to winning ways against Pulse and Team Bath face Surrey Storm.
Celtic Dragons vs Severn Stars - Saturday at 4pm
In Round 11, Dragons picked up their first home win of the season as they overcame London Pulse in Cardiff.
The Welsh side's most significant charge to take the victory came in the final two minutes of the third quarter as they notched up five unanswered goals. Then, they pressed on and will be eager to brush aside a short turnaround and replicate that winning feeling.
Stars are arriving off a tough time at the office after losing to both Loughborough Lightning and Team Bath but there is little room to dwell on the results as their busy schedule continues.
"This game is a massive one for us as we beat Dragons the first time around so we know a win is there for us to take," said shooter Georgia Rowe, who was one of two players to move from the Welsh club ahead of this Superleague season.
"We have been massively disappointed and dissatisfied with some of our results and I personally think, looking at our team, that we should be higher up in the table.
"We have shown we can compete against any team so there is definitely frustration there and we will be taking that frustration out on Dragons and ensuring we put out a good performance."
The last time these two met Stars were the victors by 17 goals, however, Dragons are brimming with confidence and have home advantage in their corner.
Loughborough Lightning vs Saracens Mavericks - Saturday at 6pm
What a clash this will be at the Sir David Wallace Arena as two form-teams will be going toe to toe and battling to take vital points away from each other.
Lightning are flying after winning their last six on the bounce while Mavs fought back from a five-goal half-time deficit to secure their Round 11 victory over Surrey Storm.
The potential head-to-head match-ups are quite something including Razia Quashie and Jo Trip's work to stall the partnership of Ella Clark and Mary Cholhok.
With the tightness of the Superleague table, this match has real significance and both head coaches will want to see their sides handle that pressure well.
Wasps Netball vs London Pulse - Sunday at 4pm
After consecutive losses by a one-goal to Lightning and Thunder, Wasps will eager to get back to winning ways against London Pulse this week.
Mel Mansfield's side came out on top when the two sides last met, winning 61-50 back in Round Three, and are taking what's happened of late in their stride.
"I don't think that any season ever runs perfectly smoothly but we've got a squad full of really strong characters and we're determined to learn from the recent losses," said experienced mid-courter Jade Clarke.
"We shouldn't forget the positives and how well we have been playing for large parts of the last few games - we have actually played some of our best netball.
"I love these exciting games and now we're working hard on how we can close them out under pressure."
London Pulse's encounter with Dragons saw them put a range of netball on the court from quick and fluid netball to periods that were ravaged by errors.
Pulse's line-up changed throughout their last fixture so Wasps will need to make sure they prepare for a wealth of eventualities.
When the new franchise hit their straps they can be competitive with the top sides but they will need to early and not cease for 60 minutes. That is a real challenge.
Surrey Storm vs Team Bath - Monday at 7:30pm
"If we play the 30 minutes of netball that we did in the start against Mavericks we will beat anybody. But, we need to understand that just because we've done it for 30 doesn't mean that we've already won the game."
That was the assessment of Surrey Storm's director of netball Mikki Austin after their Round 11 loss to Mavs and she is aware of what's now on the horizon.
"Bath absolutely command respect, they are a top-four kind of team and have got some absolute powerhouses on their roster," said Austin.
"With the top five being as close as it is, every single point that any one of those teams gain is going to matter.
"So I have no question that they're going to see every game from this point on as a final, because they'll need to make top four. But if we want to finish in the top six and keep competing for that fifth or fourth spot, the same rules apply for us"
For Team Bath, head coach Anna Stembridge highlighted the "confidence" and "momentum" they gained from their derby win over Stars but is focused on the here and now.
"It's just important that we prepare game to game and don't get ahead of ourselves as we have seen how competitive this league is," she said.
Strathclyde Sirens vs Manchester Thunder - Monday at 7:30pm live on Sky Sports Mix and Action & streamed on Sky Sports YouTube channel
Manchester Thunder's quest to maintain their position at the top of the table will be tested by Gail Parata's Sirens team.
The match, live on Sky Sports Mix and Action as well as being streamed on the Sky Sports YouTube channel, will be a tough test for Sirens, who go into it off a narrow loss.
"In the Bath match we felt that we were really up at the level that we can play at and we just wanted to be able to maintain that but Bath are a great side and managed to get the lead on us near the end," shooter Beth Goodwin told Sky Sports.
"We're not too downhearted by the loss, it was a small margin that's always really upsetting to lose by, but it's instilled a belief in us that we know what we're capable of."
Thunder also arrive with a wave of positive emotions behind them after a corking clash with Wasps Netball. One goal separated the two at the full-time whistle after they came back from half-time and three-quarter time deficits.
With five consecutive victories in their corner and a set of vastly experience players in their ranks, Thunder are flying and it will take something special from Sirens to stop them.
Strathclyde Sirens hosting Manchester Thunder is live on Sky Sports Mix and Action on Monday, April 1 from 7.15pm and will be streamed live on the Sky Sports YouTube channel. Also, Sky Sports will be showing every game of the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup in July.
