2015 Netball Superleague season preview
Monday 26 January 2015 16:23, UK
The 2015 Netball Superleague season starts live on Sky Sports 4 on Monday January 26, but who are the favourites for the title? We analyse the contenders...
Ahead of Surrey Storm v Manchester Thunder kicking off the 2015 Superleague on Sky Sports, we've asked former Storm player Natalie Seaton to preview the eight franchises heading into the new season.
Don't forget you can be in attendance to all the best matches thanks to Sky Tickets!
MANCHESTER THUNDER
Last season: 1st
Tracey Neville's side will looking to retain their 2014 crown with another dominant season at the Thunderdome. England internationals Sara Bayman, Helen Housby, Laura Malcolm and Emma Dovey are a strong foundation to this youthful and talented side; who are brimming with confidence and ooze passion. The addition of former Aussie Diamond Chelsea Pitman adds further steel to an already battling squad, who start the season as title favourite.
Seaton said: “Thunder never stop wanting to win, they want to dominate the league and Tracey Neville’s side is going to want to go out there and put in a good performance. What impresses me with Thunder is that urgency and that want to win. So last season is probably a distant memory to them. They’re here to prove they are best team this season. They have that hunger, they have that fight and they have internationals as well. They’ve got Sara Bayman leading them up from the front. They’re going to be a strong team and hard to beat this season."
Thunder tickets and Storm tickets (including their London Live match) are available from Sky Tickets.
Seaton has her say on the opening match, the players to watch and the national team...
SURREY STORM
Last season: 2nd
Player-coach Tamsin Greenway has employed England international Goal Attack Pam Cookey over the summer to add further experience to her already strong squad. Add former Mavericks trio Mikki Austin, Josie Huckle and Laurelle Borck to the mix and Storm look like they'll be once more pushing for the title.
Seaton said: "Both sides have different points to prove when Storm face Thunder. Storm are unfortunately named the bridesmaids of the Superleague because they’ve been to the final and not won yet. They have a point to prove to be a dominant force throughout the season and actually being able to perform in the finals.”
Watch Thunder v Storm live on Sky Sports 4 on Monday January 26
HERTFORDSHIRE MAVERICKS
Last season: 3rd
Mavericks have retained their strong defensive unit from last year, including Player of the Season Layla Guscoth and England international Lindsay Keable. The attacking sister act of Sasha and Kadeen Corbin, plus the return of promising midcourter Sophia Candappa from injury, put the Mavericks firmly in the spotlight to challenge for the title.
Seaton said: "I think Mavericks are one of the teams that I’m most looking forward to watching. They’ve got Louisa Watson coming back. She was an international Goal Shooter for England and her going in at the back there will strengthen up their squad. They’ve got a tremendous defensive unit which is renowned throughout the league in terms of their turnover rate and their centre court is looking extremely solid. They’re going to be an exciting one to look at."
TEAM BATH
Last season: 4th
Bath have lost two of their international players over the off-season but still have brought in Bessie Manu from New Zealand and Wales centre Kyra Jones and Scotland captain Claire Brownie. Talented defender Sam Cook returns from injury to make the squad and will hope to help the team win another Superleague title, as she did in 2013.
Seaton said: "Bath have lost a lot of players. They lost Serena Guthrie, who is off to the ANZ, and Pam [Cookey] has gone to Storm, but they have a really good history of bringing players through, and their youngsters will really want to prove that they are the next Team Bath stars of the future.
Bath tickets are available from Sky Tickets.
CELTIC DRAGONS
Last season: 5th
After a rocky season off the court with coach Melissa Hyndman leaving, the Dragons will be hoping for a slightly more consistent year. Timmy Cato has moved to Jets, but with the World Cup in mind, this talented set of Welsh stars will continue to work as an extremely effective unit under coach Trish Wilcox.
Seaton said: "The [Welsh] girls are going to be working hard to get a position on court and also to get a position in that World Cup squad so it will only aid their team development. Then we’re looking at new players coming in to the fold as well and it will be quite interesting to see how they pan out."
TEAM NORTHUMBRIA
Last season: 6th
Northumbria have added Aussie defender Nicole Styles and Scotland's Hayley Mulheron to their line-up this season, while retaining strong Northern Irish stars Fionnula Toner and Caroline O'Hanlon. Northumbria will hope to improve on last season’s erratic results with more consistent form.
Seaton said: "Northumbria did very well in terms of performances against the top teams last season but in matches they should have won they didn’t perform. So this season I’m hoping they win more of those matches."
Northumbria tickets are available from Sky Tickets.
Check out Sky Bet's dedicated netball page for the latest competitions and odds.
YORKSHIRE JETS
Last season: 7th
It was surprising to see Jets finish so low in the table last season. The announcement of a new sponsor partnership and that the club will travel around the county for their matches could be the catalyst to get Jets battling in the top four. Add in former Dragons shooter Timmy Cato and Australia's Sally Butters to the midcourt, and it could be an exciting season across the Dales.
Seaton said: "They do have [quite a strong shooting force] and they added Timmy Cato to that the line-up. She will definitely add to that force and I think the partnership between herself and Natalie Haythornthwaite, will be really important in terms of their ability to get goals. However, they did pull out some very good performances last season. They will be pushing to get in that top four and I think they have the capacity to do that."
LOUGHBOROUGH LIGHTNING
Last season: 8th
Lightning have gone through some dramatic changes during the off-season, and they were needed. Former England internationals Karen Atkinson and Olivia Murphy have joined come in to coach. While the recruitment of South Africa captain Maryka Holtzhausen and defender Phumza Maweni, plus Ugandan shooter Peace Proscovia give Lightning a great chance of having a good season.
Seaton said: "I’m looking forward to seeing the Goal Attack from South Africa, Maryka Holtzhausen. She has been a formidable force for South Africa; she’s been playing Goal Attack, Goal Shooter and the Wing Attack position. She brings her international experience and will add to that squad and really make them a force to be reckoned with.
"The new management of Karen Atkinson and Olivia Murphy going back to Loughborough and working with that squad will definitely result in improvements. They lost all their matches last season which was obviously very unfortunate and I think Karen has been very clear about her objectives for the upcoming season. She would obviously like to improve their performances, be competitive and be a force to be reckoned with."
