Saturday 22 February 2020 20:25, UK
Manchester Thunder's Grand Final success last year ended a five-year wait for a Vitality Netball Superleague crown - and on the evidence of Saturday's Season Opener win over Wasps, their next wait may not be as long.
A 62-55 win was enough for Karen Greig's team to start in style, while for the second year in succession, Loughborough Lightning suffered an opening day defeat.
Biggest victory honours went to Saracens Mavericks. Having missed out on the top four last year, they served notice of their intent with a 21-goal win over Severn Stars.
In front of a crowd of 8,473 at Arena Birmingham, and despite some off-season grumbles about the introduction of an extra round of fixtures, it was the champions who dished out an ominous message to their rivals as they beat Wasps in a repeat of last May's Grand Final.
The off-season retirement of Kerry Almond and the departure of Liana Leota looks like being no barrier to a Thunder title challenge - one look at their bench of Joyce Mvula, Caroline O'Hanlon and Rebekah Airey showed that.
And so it proved as Thunder hit the front early against Wasps and never looked back. England shooter Eleanor Cardwell linked up with Kathryn Turner to pave the way to a 17-11 advantage after the opening 15 minutes.
Spurred on by the tigerish Jade Clarke and Fran Williams, two-time champions Wasps fought back in the second quarter and matched the champions goal-for-goal to stay in touch and trail by six at the interval.
Thunder were only too aware of the deficit, recalling Wasps' comeback in the Grand Final nine months ago, and duly began to squeeze their opponents with trademark efficiency.
Keeping errors to a minimum, and introducing Northern Ireland international O'Hanlon to team up with Amy Carter through the middle, Greig's team edged the third quarter to lead by eight and that was enough to see off a spirited Wasps who could not find their own flow in attack.
Up Next - Thunder, who started last season with five wins in succession, travel to Severn Stars on Saturday while Wasps are not in action until Monday when they host Mavericks.
A star-studded Saracens Mavericks underlined their top four credentials, racking up the biggest win of the day in a 70-49 win over a Severn Stars squad under the guidance of new coach Melissa Bessell.
However, they had to dig deep after a slow start which had a new-look Stars in the ascendancy early. Liana Leota, fresh from her switch from champions Thunder, inspired a fast start that had last season's sixth-placed Stars six goals to the good at the end of the first quarter.
A stellar Mavericks squad still have prolific defender Jodie Gibson to return from serious knee injury - but their international quality came to the fore after their slower start.
Trailing 17-11, Mavericks put on a second-quarter masterclass in both circles as George Fisher in attack and Razia Quashie at goalkeeper helped them win the period 23-8 to turn the deficit into a nine-goal lead at half-time.
It seemed to break the resolve of a Stars team who were unable to get close and force the defensive turnovers needed to get back into the game. Instead it was Mavericks who continued to pull away, finishing with a 21-goal victory that underlined their ambition to put two years of missing out on the top four behind them.
Up Next - Mavericks are on the road when they travel to the Ricoh Arena to face Wasps in Round Two next Monday, while Severn Stars' search for a first win will see them host champions Manchester Thunder on Saturday.
Despite the absence of England internationals Serena Guthrie and Eboni Usoro-Brown, Team Bath served up a blistering performance to beat Loughborough Lightning 72-58.
Both teams reached the top four last season and, after a relatively even opening exchange, the departure of England star and Lightning captain Nat Panagarry saw Loughborough lose their way.
Bath had Lightning's number last year, winning both games in the regular season, and they did so again in Birmingham, opening up a five-goal lead by the end of the first quarter - Mary Cholhok doing enough to keep Loughborough in touching distance.
By halfway through the second quarter, Lightning drew to within one but that was as good as it got as Aussie shooter Kim Commane went through the gears - teaming up with Sophie Drakeford-Lewis to re-establish a lead going into half-time.
Bath's new captain, in her second season with the franchise, was unstoppable under the posts, firing 55 goals on her way to player of the match honours as Bath pulled away over the final two quarters to make the perfect start to their season.
Up Next - Both teams return to action on Saturday. Bath are looking to make it two wins from two when they travel to a Celtic Dragons side edged out by Surrey Storm in Birmingham and out to bounce back.
Lightning, who lost by 30 on the opening weekend last year, are also in action on Saturday, when they host Strathclyde Sirens.
Coverage of the Vitality Superleague season continues on Monday March 2 when Surrey Storm entertain London Pulse, join us on Sky Sports Arena, Mix and YouTube from 7pm
