Netball: Surrey Storm beat Hertfordshire Mavericks in front of record crowd
Saturday 7 March 2015 21:08, UK
Surrey Storm came out 55-42 winners over Hertfordshire Mavericks in front of a record-breaking crowd at the Copper Box Arena for Netball London Live.
The 6,033 fans packed into the Olympic Park venue were treated to an excellent Superleague match as Storm recreated their win in 2014 to once again beat rivals Mavericks.
Surrey took an early lead in the match, pushing to a five-goal advantage by the end of the first quarter, thanks to the impressive work of England attacking trio Rachel Dunn, Pamela Cookey and Tamsin Greenway.
Goal Shooter Dunn was in fine form in the first half of the game, using her experience to craft an easy route for the ball in to the circle, which player-coach Greenway delivered with confidence every time.
At the first quarter whistle Storm were up 18-13 and it was looking worrying for Sam Bird's Mavericks as they gave too much ball away.
The Hertfordshire outfit came out for the next 15 minutes with a new-found determination. Sisters Sasha and Kadeen Corbin came into the game, combining well and showing the full range of their athleticism and quick hands. From a five-goal deficit Mavericks were suddenly two in front, Storm secured a turnover just before half-time which meant sides went in to the break level at 28-28.
Just as Mavericks looked to have all the momentum it was swept away with the influential Kadeen Corbin suffering an injury and having to be substituted. Her replacement Sarah East struggled to keep up with the pace and was clearly missing match fitness. Surrey seized the opportunity to take back control of the game, despite the best efforts of Mavericks defenders Naida Hutchinson and Layla Guscoth, who both worked tirelessly throughout the match.
East was subbed for the final quarter and replaced with the 19-year-old Sophie Hankin. But the five-goal deficit for Mavericks was too much with the shooting end suffering with the multiple changes. Their trademark smart movement has ceased as they lost the flow. It was then only Storm's game as they riled their opponents with quality work, eventually coming out winners.
The victory means Storm stay second in the table while defeat for Mavericks meant they were unable to go above Yorkshire Jets.
