Manchester Thunder's Karen Greig calls for this Vitality Netball Superleague season to be 'different' for the franchise
Tuesday 2 April 2019 15:54, UK
Manchester Thunder's director of netball Karen Greig has called for this Vitality Netball Superleague season to be "different" for the franchise.
Greig's statement came after they moved back on top of the table as a result of their tenth win of the season. Thunder prevailed over Strathclyde Sirens 62-36 on Monday night at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow.
"We've said from the start of this season that this season has to be different for us. We've come third for the last two years and have just missed out on that final spot," said the director of netball.
"We've said all along that our intention is, ultimately to finish top two, so that we can get that home semi-final. We're really pushing to go that one step further this year so every game counts, every point counts and every goal.
"The results that are happening in and around the league are really tight as well so it's always good to keep a close eye on that."
On the same night, Team Bath were pushed all the way by Surrey Storm and the conclusion of both matches leaves the Superleague table tighter than ever as the race of the playoffs hots up.
Thunder sit on top with 30 points before three sides follow close behind on 27 points - Wasps Netball, Team Bath, and Loughborough Lightning. Saracens Mavericks then sit behind in fifth on 24 points before a 12-point drop down to sixth.
Manchester Thunder last won the competition in 2014, their second title after a triumph two years before in 2012. Since that point, they have finished as runners-up in 2016 and then achieved the consecutive third-place positions that Greig spoke of.
As a squad they are one of the most settled in the competition with key combinations having vast experience of playing together.
However, with a 33-18 half-time lead in Glasgow, their director of netball used the opportunity to mix up her combinations in the second 30 minutes including handing a Superleague debut to shooter Ally Thomas.
"The girls that came on the court had things to prove as well because when you're playing against teams like Wasps, Mavericks, Loughborough and Bath you'd don't necessarily get to give everyone an opportunity and test those combinations. So some of the girls had things to prove and some of them did a really good job," commented Greig post-match.
"It would be easy to just take your foot off the pedal completely and just ride it out but there were still areas of really good pressure."
In spite of the comprehensive final margin, the high standards that Thunder set themselves were evident in the post-match assessment of Liana Leota, the players' own comments on social media and through Greig's additional thoughts.
"I think that it was a patchy 60 minutes really. It was a great start, we came out of the blocks at 100mph and we got some really good turnovers and we rewarded ourselves in the attack end," added Greig.
"But, I just think that there were times when we took our foot off the pedal and we expected things to maybe to come to us a little bit easier [than they did]. Sirens are a team that never give up, they're going to run you hard and they're going to challenge ball.
"There were just times when our timing was off a little bit and we stopped running and asking for ball.
"Our structures just wavered but overall really happy with the result. Ultimately to get all 12 players on the court and to give somebody a Superleague debut is really pleasing."
Thunder will now prepare to host Celtic Dragons in Round 13 before a meeting with Severn Stars on April 13.
Watch more Vitality Netball Superleague as Loughborough Lightning host Surrey Storm live on Sky Sports Mix on Monday, April 8 and the match 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.
