​PERFORMANCE 
For Seniors we only had a Northern game this week, the girls were facing local rivals Shipley Swifts at home. Tired legs for some, with five players having played the previous day at National Schools Finals, still managing to grind out a win 52-43. Tough one for Jan to coach, but well done!

Massive congratulations to our U16 Regional squad who despite several injuries have made it through to National Finals (unless anyone else scores 347 goals in their next two matches), beating Ripon Rockets 56-16. Countdown begins! Let’s go Leeds. Still on a winning streak the U14 Regional squad beat Kingston 60-20, next week will be the deciding game as to qualification for their National Finals. 

Lots of injuries in our U16 West Yorkshire squad this week, wishing you speedy recoveries. Special shout out to players who played out of position and did an awesome job to secure a win. Final score 34-15 against YMCA (2).  Super performances from the U14 West Yorkshire team playing YMCA (2) they were in control of the game from the outset eventually winning 40-20. The only U12 league team playing this week was U12(4) who showed great skill and teamwork losing only narrowly to Huddersfield Giants 8-11. 

Our Hi5ers were out battling away against a much bigger and older Huddersfield Giants, but sounds like they won the admiration of the umpires and opposition supporters with their attitude and ability. Well done girls think you win the fair play award this week, just what the league is asking for- so proud of you all. Hi 5(1) faced Huddersfield Giants. Hi5(2) scoring the most amount of goals in a match so far, well done girls. Eventual outcome 11-15 to Terrier Tots. 
A mixed team of U12 A and B travelled to Hull to play a friendly against Chevrons U13 the older team coming out on top 22-12, but lots of learning. Thanks to coach John Hipshon arranging friendly competitions on non-league fixture days.

SCHOOLS & COLLEGES
Well done to all the Yorkshire Schools who qualified, no mean feat. It was a tough day, very windy and gusty! We had athletes competing for Yorkshire Schools and North West Schools. Everyone had a mixed set of results in the rounds, with some really closely contested games across only 7 mins each way! Only GSAL U19s made it out of their group from the Yorkshire representatives, and this squad has plenty of our current and former players in it. They won the semi-final against a strong Bromsgrove side, but lost in the final to Worthing College. Proud to take the silver medal at a National Competition, well done!  

Bishop Burton, with lots of our players and former players, won their Semi in the national competition and will now meet Worthing College in the final, good luck!

LOOKING AHEAD
We are getting close to the season end, but let’s finish these well! Prem play Grangetown at home this Sunday, come and support if you can! 11:30 Beckett. Senior Regional have their final game and could be crowned champions. There are important Regional Juniors and WY Junior games.
​
AND FINALLY
A big thank you message to all our coaches and helpers, and to parents for driving everywhere! And, a big best wishes message to our injured players, we have plenty of recent injuries as well as some longer standing ones. It is tough when you can’t do what you love, but stay strong and follow advice and we look forward to seeing you back as soon as possible.
 
Leeds Athletic Netball Club
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

​An update about performance, the usual update about wider netball, and a very important message from colleagues who run the West Yorkshire Junior Netball League on our behalf. Please ensure you read the bottom of the message. And also keep in touch with injured team mates to make sure they're ok!

A busy Sunday of fixtures, although some unfortunately postponed because of leaks in roofs! The U16s and U14s both played against Malton U14s and U16s in their sixth match of the Junior Yorkshire Regional League. Convincing wins for both teams 14s 58-16 and 16s 68-11. Three more games each to play in this league, two more wins will confirm a place in National Club Finals where the best 18 teams in the country play tournament netball over two days.  It is getting exciting! The U16 and U14 West Yorkshire teams had their games postponed due to a leak in the ceiling at Huddersfield University.

Birkenshaw Belles U12 will have slept well coming up against our super U12(1) who beat them 66-3 which might be a league record! Belles were positive and didn’t give up though, so credit to them.  U12(2) played YMCA coming out with a resounding 21-13 win. The U12(3) faced Huddersfield Giants (1) resulting in a narrow loss of two goals. A very smart photo on Facebook of our U12(4) team today despite their loss 14-8 to Yorkshire Terriers.  These photos are setting new standards! In Hi5 an experienced YMCA team turned up to beat our Hi5(2) 30-2 keep trying girls. The Hi5 (1) girls played Twinkles losing 7-10 – but let’s remember these athletes are young!

Moving into seniors, there was an excellent win for our Senior Regional team comprising of players all 18 and under who beat Sheffield Open 52-44. Lots of experience on their side versus agility and speed on ours. Superb achievement, leaving us second in the table with one game to play and all to play for, let’s go! The Northern squad travelled to the East coast to play Hull Chevrons but were thwarted by another leaking sports hall as the match was called off by the umpire due to safety concerns. Two games left and in second place in the league. Finally our Prem Squad had a very early start and facing a very strong Turnford side and only coming up 7 goals short. Importantly though, our Prem squad have secured enough points to stay up in Prem 1 for next season, which is excellent.

Wider netball update

Lots going on as usual! Some of our former players preparing for important BUCS Semi Finals this week. Looks an interesting draw and should be some good games. Plenty to follow in Superleague and Australia/NZ as there is a build up to the World Cup.  Quite a few of our players are preparing for National Schools Finals this weekend, in Hertfordshire, let’s hope that the weather improves and we don’t add to our injury tally!

Rhinos U19 squad, which had ten of our players in it on Saturday, notched up an excellent win against Mavericks. In possibly an unprecedented situation, the Rhinos vs Mavs one goal win in December was disallowed because of an error in the scoring. Despite an appeal, Rhinos had to replay the game last weekend, so it was a high stakes game. Rhinos played well and secured a nine goal victory, which was a great result and leaves Rhinos 4th in the table. Good luck to those in NPL comps this next few weeks at u19 and U21.


IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM WYJNL COLLEAGUES

We are putting this message out literally as it has been sent to us, given its importance. Coaches will talk to athletes about this at sessions this week, and there will be a reminder on Facebook. This advice does tie in with our code of conduct in our handbook, and the images in there, here is a link: https://www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk/club-info.html

Dear Club Contacts
 
The WYJNL Committee are constantly working to improve the development of netball in our County.  As we are all involved in clubs ourselves we are aware of the challenges you face with not only developing players technically and tactically but also in educating players, team officials/bench players and parents/supporters on acceptable and unacceptable behaviours on match day.  We appreciate you as Club leads may not always be at matches and this could mean match day responsibilities may fall on others involved in your clubs. 
 
Respecting umpires is not a request it is essential.   Below is some important information that we need you to share with your players, team officials/bench players and parents/supporters.  Further information and more details can be found in the INF rule book 2018 Edition.
 
1.       Players on court are expected to respond to rulings made by the umpires and adjust their play accordingly.   Please remind players;
a.       A caution (followed by a penalty) is the umpire advising a player that the behaviour specified must change. 
b.      A player who does not change her behaviour after a caution will be issued with a warning.  Warnings may be given even if no caution has been issued.
c.       A suspension of 2 minutes will follow a warning if the behaviour specified doesn’t change.  In the case of dangerous play or misconduct a player may be suspended without a warning if the umpire considers the action justified.
d.      A player who is ordered off will take no further part in the match.  While this normally follows a suspension or warning this is not prerequisite if the umpire considers such action is justified.
 
2.       Team Officials and Bench Players must not;
a.       Criticise the umpires or their decisions.
b.      Use offensive, insulting or abusive language and/or gestures.
c.       Use excessive noise or interruption.
d.      Encourage foul play by on-court players.
 
Team officials and bench players can be given a Caution, Warning and umpires can give an Order for the person’s removal from the playing enclosure.
 
The WYJNL insist that parents/supporters must not approach the umpire during or after a fixture however a player with a coach or captain can approach the umpire at quarter times for clarification.

PHOTOGRAPHY/VIDEO

As a further issue, please be reminded that photography and videos including the opposition are not allowed unless prior permission has been granted by the opposition, both umpires and the league. At least one week notice must be given to allow the necessary communication to be made.  As parents and players all you have to do is ask Susie Stead or your team admin to obtain the permissions for you, that is one e mail. Please do not cause embarrassment by turning up with your camera on the day and expect to be given the go ahead. 

And finally, some of these things might seem onerous or condescending, but they are usually there for good reason, such as safeguarding or recruiting and retaining volunteers. If clubs don’t comply with these expected standards, then teams could lose points or be asked to leave leagues. Sorry!


Leeds Athletic Netball Club
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

​Before we start with performance this week, let's just give a shout out to our injured players. We are sending best wishes to you guys for a speedy and sustained return to the court and the Club. 

Performance this week, some of which can also be found on Facebook! Thank you to people putting up reports!

Let’s start with our fabulous U12 (1) team who travelled to High Wycombe on Saturday to pitch themselves against the best in the country, competing in the ENG Sports UK National Finals. They started a little slowly with a 5-8 loss to Matrix NC. They put up a hard fight against eventual runners up, Turnford losing 5-6 following a disallowed goal! The final group match was v Parkside a convincing 8-0 win. Through to the play offs they met old rivals, Kingston Phoenix who had previously beaten them in the Regional heat our girls won 8-2. Through to the quarter finals v mighty Tameside who were in a league of their own, so they had to accept defeat 2-16 to the eventual winners of the Tournament.

Overall, a massive achievement to make the quarter finals of this National competition. The girls had the most amazing experience and it really brought them closer as a team.  Really proud of you girls clearly in a tough group initially. Many thanks to our dedicated and experience coach John Hipshon the driving force behind the U12s, to our team admin Kathryn Dyer and our brilliant parents. 

Also on Saturday our West Yorkshire Seniors had a rare loss 36-43,to Harrogate Phoenix.  

It was a great win for our Netball Nights team on Wednesday 25-17 against Farsley Celtic, this talented junior team supported by coach Libby Hodgkiss are holding their own in this adult league. 
On Sunday the club had nine fixtures. 

A big game for our Prem team against Worcester Reds placed one position below us in the league but it was a storming LANC side who were clear winners taking the match 58-42. A close game to begin with, but the squad pulling away in 3rd quarter. Well done everyone.

Again in Seniors the super speedy Northern girls ensured a win against Oaksway the final score was 52-37. Oaksway didn’t give up and came back in last quarter, but we had a big enough lead.

In the U16s the West Yorkshire squad continued their winning ways with a tough match against YMCA (1) resulting in a 23-23 draw, so the league positions remain the same with Leeds in first and YMCA with second place for now and four games to go. The U14s West Yorkshire squad beat Yorkshire Terriers, starting off really strong and ending 31-17.
There were three U12 teams playing today in the West Yorkshire League. Firstly our ENGU12 quarter finalists U12(1) pushed equal first in the league Wakefield Wildcats(1) and posted an amazing 40-10 score against them, then went to Pizza Express to celebrate. The U12(2) hoping to hold on to their third position in the league behind LANC(1) and Wakefield Wildcats(1) took the game to Wakefield Phoenix(1) and won 8-3. The U12(3) v Birkenshaw Belles (1) had a great win 25-6. lots of things finally came together and they worked as a fantastic team. Thanks to coach Becky Hewson helping these young athletes in a tricky U12 league. 

Our Hi5 girls were pitched against each other this week, it was exciting but tense pre match. The final result was 19-3 to LANC(1) but there was some great play and super teamwork from both sides. 

Looking ahead, busy one next weekend, all three senior teams are in action on Sunday, plus Junior Regional games and lots of Junior WY games too.

Great to see so many of our athletes on the pitch at Rhinos for the opening game at the new stadium. New activities announced including Shooting Workshop with Dan Ryan, Camps and Masterclasses. Get booked on via the website if you want to improve your game. Recommend Hubs and Minis to friends! 

Hope some of you managed to get to the Netball Europe competition at Huddersfield this weekend, sounds like a great tournament. 

The Sky game on TV tmrw features our former player Lucy Harris in the Stars side! 
Leeds Athletic Netball Club
​
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

​U12 – National Finals of ENG Netball Cup

Leading today with a focus on our U12s, who head to High Wycombe on Saturday 2 March to compete in the National finals of the ENG Netball Cup.  Their journey began back in December where they played in the Regional qualifier in Manchester.  The girls came up against some tough opposition in Manchester including teams from Tameside, Trafford and Kingston. 

Their opening match saw them losing 3:13 to a dominant Tameside.  This was a new experience for the girls who had not met such strong players before.  They knuckled down to win their next matches 12:0 against Knutsford, 4:3 against Trafford and 9:1 against our own B Team.  This saw them through to the quarter finals where they met Headlanders.  This was a nail biting match where the girls showed steely determination coming back from 2:5 down to win 8:7 in extra time.  Next up was the semi-final where we played a strong Kingston Team.  We lost by one turnover 3:5 and then played Trafford for 3rd/4th place.  We had previously beaten this team in the earlier rounds but unfortunately conceded a loss this time 6:8 which meant we qualified for the National Final in 4th place. 

This was a great achievement for this then inexperienced team and we took a lot of positives from this experience.  Since then we have had some excellent training sessions, brilliant league wins and some challenging friendlies, including playing our own U13s in order to help prepare for the National Finals.  The girls are ready to put their best foot forward as we head to High Wycombe next weekend.  Our group matches will see us play Matrix NC, Turnford and Parkside.  Good luck to John and the girls, we look forward to your updates on Twitter throughout the day – thanks to Kathryn for all her work with this squad and thanks to parents for their support and encouragement. Be proud to wear that Black and Blue guys and enjoy this experience of national level netball at such a young age – amazing experience! 
​
Team selected for the final is the full A Team squad:-
Deeya, Amelia, Penny, Madison, Izzy, Lucy, Elle, Sadie, Grace, Freya, Charley-Megan

Results

It was a nail biting match for the supporters of our young netball nights team, who came away with a one goal win against Koalas, final score 27-26. Great experience closing out a game girls, well done. On Saturday our West Yorkshire Seniors faced Leeds Lightning it was a battle 16-16 at half time but  in the end it was another win 34-29. Prem were out on Sunday away to Premier Romans, our young squad, some of whom had played in the Rhinos first home NPL match the day before, travelled south to Bristol and stole the points in a 51-48 win. The Northern athletes faced Hi Tech who always provide a physical contest. Our girls pulled out all the stops but just fell short with a 41-42 loss. The U14 and U16 Regional teams were playing in Barnsley on their road to National Club Finals. Both teams won, U14 v Chevrons 54-16 and U16 v Kingston 70-12.  Both of the opposing teams were placed second in the league behind LANC before this fixture so the results were crucial. It’s looking good for both teams to achieve their ambition of reaching the National Club Finals on 4/5th May at Redbridge Leisure Centre for the U16s and 25/26th May at the University of Worcester for the U14s. See FB for more updates, and thanks to our team admins who post these!

Wider Netball stuff

We’ve had lots of athletes in representative stuff, with NPL and GB Colleges team in recent weeks. This weekend saw a great day for Rhinos Netball, just seven months in from securing formal delivery of the Pathway. It was a great victory for the NPL squad, with well over half the athletes from Leeds Athletic, and the starting seven all Leeds Athletic players. Playing Severn Stars, the girls won 61-43 in front of a super crowd in the first ever league game in Leeds! We also had players in the U15 festival and the Minis Demo as well, both of which were great for the athletes. Minis were ball girls, plenty of our coaches were involved, and there was also a meeting with County coaches about the Pathway for next year.

Get listening to Netball Nation podcast, with our very own Maggie Birkinshaw. Last week saw Anna Carter, with Erin and Lucy, on Radio Leeds, talking all things netball and the ambition to bring Superleague back to Yorkshire! Plenty of our athletes are also preparing for National Schools Finals mid-March.
 
Netball Europe U17 competition is on in Huddersfield this coming weekend, and the athletes from the home nations would appreciate support I am sure. Regrettably, we don’t have any of our own athletes appearing in this competition this year, thought we have loads of our former athletes playing in the various VNSL teams and in u21 competition as well.

We will be submitting our response to the Yorkshire Netball review of competition this week, so if anyone has any burning ideas for improvement, please let us know. 

Looking ahead

See above the the main event for Club with our U12 next weekend, plus Netball Nights on Wednesday and WY on Saturday! Prem and Northern on Sunday, plus a range of Junior WY games. No Regional Junior or Senior games next weekend. Plenty of NPL action over the weekend, including Rhinos vs Mavericks in U19. 

Get involved

As a club, we still need more umpires! Talk to Louise/Susie if you fancy, c'mon, dads make great umpires as well as mums!  

Leeds Athletic Netball Club
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

​Fewer results than normal, but plenty of other netball stuff to update you with.
Some great results in friendlies this weekend for our U12 and U14 against Grangetown and a travelling school team. These sounded like fun too!

We’re well into the Superleague season now, and the NPL U19/21 season. We have plenty of our athletes playing and some good results coming through for teams featuring our athletes. Follow the various franchises on Twitter and Facebook for the best updates.

Big weekend for Rhinos U19 Squad next weekend, first ever home game in Leeds. Let’s get as many supporters there as we can to show that we’re interested in netball and that we want a Superleague squad back here! Tickets are just £3.00, available on this link, it is a great way for younger athletes to learn, and the squad will feature plenty of our own athletes! 
http://www.leedsrhinosnetball.co.uk/events/nplh2/
​
Yorkshire Netball are reviewing the competition structure in place for juniors and adults, to see what improvements can be made. If anyone is interested in contributing to our response, please emailleedsathleticnetballclub@gmail.com
Your local team admin will let you know about training for half term, most groups are training, especially seniors who have a busy fixtures card next weekend, along with another Regional Game each for U14/U16 in their quest to qualify for the all-important Club Nationals!

We always try and run two Netball Nights Teams during the summer League – April-October – which give younger athletes an opportunity to play with more experienced athletes. However, we need parent volunteers to step in and run these. Any volunteers, please let Mark know on maboocock@sky.com

Thanks


Leeds Athletic Netball Club
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

​Wow have you seen the U12A goal difference at the top of their league, scored 213, against 11, goal difference 202 – not bad! Likewise our U16 Regional squad have a great goal difference at the top of their league it is 192 the second placed team are on 26! U16A had a challenging win on Sunday 57-13 against Chevrons.  The U14 Regional squad also won their fourth match out of four on their road to National club finals, this week a tough match v Huddersfield Giants 37-14. Nationals is getting closer for those lucky athletes who will get such good experience!

The U14 and U16 West Yorkshire teams also had great results beating YMCA (3) 45-10 and Shipley 41-11 respectively, both are top of their divisions.

The U12(1) and U12(3) played each other recording a score of 63-1 to the firsts only to be expected with lots of older more experienced players in this talented U12(1) squad. It was a match played in great spirit and mutual appreciation, some great pictures can be seen on our FaceBook page.

Our U12(2) had a tough match with Wakefield Wildcats (1) just losing out 9-11. Then our U12(4) lost to Birkenshaw Belles 5-10 but did a sterling job considering the lack of players.

The super Hi5 (1) players battled on losing 25-3 keep going girls. Hi5 (2) had a difficult match pitched against Huddersfield Giants (1) recording a loss of 2-28, these games are mentally and physically challenging but our athletes learn so much given they are so young!

The Northern League Senior athletes continued their winning streak beating Gateshead 64-50, currently placed second in the league, so all to play for that top spot!

Prem had an excellent win, playing at home against Academy who were positioned three places above them, and won 63-53, which is a great result, including some young players. We are currently out of the danger zone in Prem, with some good recent results. Well done and thanks to Francine.

On Saturday our West Yorkshire Superleague Senior team beat a strong Calderdale team 58-54. Really close game, well done everyone. Again, we have a spot in the top three at the moment, but plenty of games left in this league. There was no senior regional league game this weekend, but again we are second in that league as well.

Great to see the photos and match reports on Facebook, thanks to team admins for all they do to give these athletes opportunity, not to mention all the work of our coaches!

We put out an All Stars Leeds Athletic team on Saturday consisting of players from U14 to Superleague players to honour a friendly fixture to the touring Girls Day School Trust which consists of selected players from private schools in the country year 11-13. Great experience for our younger girls to have the opportunity to play with such experienced players and learn loads.

Finally mid-week our young netball nights team playing in this senior league lost 25-35 to Leeds Lightning, but again learned lots playing adult opposition at such a young age and preparing for nationals.

Lots of our athletes and coaches were also engaged in Rhinos and other NPL activity. Notably the Rhinos had a coaching conference, lots of Academy vs Elite games, and an U19 NPL game, at EIS, a historic first home game resulting in a win. We had players and coaches out for LBoro as well, with Lboro U21s securing a good win against Bath.

Yorkshire Netball are undertaking a review of the competition structures, which it is important we feed into. We are asking our coaches and parent helpers, so if you have anything to feed through from your perspective, please do so. The deadline is end February.  

Rhinos are advertising half term camps and masterclasses, which are great opportunities for additional training. Visit the website to book. Remember to watch the Superleague games on Sky. There will be some Rhinos U19 home games to watch coming up as well, where you’ll see lots of our athletes in action and it is great learning for our younger members.

Leeds Athletic Netball Club
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

​Another great set of results for our club this week. If you want to read more detailed match reports go to our Facebook page where our brilliant volunteers post fantastic round ups of the day’s matches and photos of the teams.

On Wednesday our Netball Nights team had a great win against Leeds Medics 38-19. Again, brilliant exposure for our juniors in this senior league.

The West Yorkshire Senior team had formidable opponents on Saturday but ground out a win of 53 to 50 against Alliance.  

First up on Sunday were the Senior Regional team playing top of the league Sheffield Stormers and coming away with the win 60-58 lots of U16s getting opportunities here. This squad is second in the league, so all to play for!  The U12(4) team were out against Twinkles but things didn’t quite go their way and the score line does not reflect the excellent play or effort made by our young athletes, it was a 6-17  loss. Better fortunes for the U16 West Yorkshire team coached by Maggie Birkinshaw turning over Yorkshire Terriers 47-19. Next up were the U14 West Yorkshire team another win which was earned in the second half by sheer determination and excellent fitness a 32-20 scoreline with Libby Hodgkiss as coach.

Our Prem team had a tough match at the other side of the Pennines losing to regular champions and league leaders Oldham, with a 82-36 score.  We are still in bottom half of this league, but hopefully not in the danger zone! The Northern athletes continued their winning streak with coach Jan Hemsley 53-35 to Leeds v Seatonians, not a great showcase, but ground out a win! We are second in this league, so again, all to play for, well done everyone.

Well done to our athletes featuring in rep sides, Rhinos NPL U19, where a lot of our athletes play, won by one to a strong LBoro side. Other athletes have been playing in other sides and in other Rhinos age groups, well done all – all great experience.

Good luck in matches this weekend. It’s one of those crazy weekends – 12 matches. Two senior ones to watch at Beckett 11:30am for Prem and 1:30pm for Northern. Plus there are NPL matches for quite a few athletes on Saturday. You can get down to watch Rhinos games at Sheffield EIS – promises to be a good day! Here is the link to book for free http://www.leedsrhinosnetball.co.uk/events/nplh1/
​
For our younger athletes, Rhinos Camps/Masterclasses are running, here is the link below – always good to get the extra practice. http://www.leedsrhinosnetball.co.uk/camps/

Leeds Athletic Netball Club
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

​Here are two weeks’ worth of result in one update! So a lot to cover from a Club perspective, in and amongst the netball fever that is around with the Quad Series and Superleague games! If you haven’t listened already, try and catch Netball Nation’s Podcast with Maggie Birkinshaw and last week’s Netball Show with Anna Carter talking about Rhinos! As well as club games, this last two weeks have seen a number of our athletes in representative games and in regional schools competitions.Here is the round up from games during the 16-20 January! First out again on this week on Wednesday our young Netball Nights team who lost to a mature Thundercats 21-15.

 A tough match for the West Yorkshire Superleague team on Saturday, against top of the league Hi tech  resulted in a brilliant win 62-42 leaving us even on points, second place on goal difference with Hi Tech and Morrisons(1) third on goal difference.

There were eleven teams out this Sunday, no Prem or Regional just our Northern team were playing in seniors, they beat Concord away by 57 goals to 36.

In Juniors our U16A continued their journey towards National Club Finals  by beating Huddersfield Giants (1) convincingly 63-17. Similarly the U14As came out with a great win against Ripon Rockets on their road to Nationals 65-9. The U16B team were also up against Huddersfield Giants their West Yorkshire team this time, the result was a win pulled out of the bag in the last quarter 32-22. Our U14B triumphed against Shipley 45-10.

 The results from the U12s were as follows- U12A v Wakefield Phoenix great netball resulting in a 59-4 win to Leeds; U12B had another win, beating Birkenshaw Belles 24-10; U12C had a close one against YMCA losing 14-18 but lots of effort all round the court; and U12D worked hard to get the result in their favour 16-14 against Whitcliffe Warriors. The smashing Hi 5 teams were also out Hi5(1) playing Wakefield Phoenix winning 20 goals to 2 a great result.  Hi5(2) pushed Wakefield Wildcats hard but lost this time 15-2. Important to remember that lots of these kids are playing out of their age groups, so may well be learning more than they are winning!

Here is the round up from games during the 23-27 January! Netball Nights secured a win on Wednesday, great for such a young team! On Sunday, our top competitive side in Prem 1 played Viper 10 Blades taking well deserved points for their 57-44 win at home, an excellent result! No other senior teams or U16A/U14A regional games this weekend due to the Regional round of National Schools in Yorkshire.

In juniors the U16 West Yorkshire team continued their super run with a 41-17 win against YMCA 2. The U14 West Yorkshire players also faced YMCA 2 in their age group and came out with another win 34-12. The U12(1) charged on with their success, an amazing 57 goals to 5 against YMCA(1).  U12(2) had a toughy Huddersfield Giants(1) but our superstars took the match 17-15. U12(3) faced a strong Wakefield Wildcats(1) losing 6-31 but lots of learning and U12(4) had a great victory over YMCA(2) 21-8 amazing when these girls are mostly U11. Our Hi5 youngsters were in action again, learning lots and developing knowledge of the game.  Hi5(1) tackled Wakefield Wildcats losing 5-23 but never gave up and Hi5(2) had a difficult one 0-15 against Wakefield Phoenix (1) plenty of time for learning and developing.
​
Well done all. Lots more fixtures coming up this weekend, including league games and friendlies! Good luck everyone, let’s put a week of hard work into training!
Thanks

Leeds Athletic Netball Club
www.leedsathleticnetballclub.org.uk
@LeedsAthleticNC

A belated Happy New Year. The second half of the season is well underway and there is so much netball around! The game is getting such awesome coverage at the moment, including our very own Maggie Birkinshaw appearing on the Netball Nation Weekly Podcast along with Sara Bayman from LBoro Lightning. SuperTen was on last week, the Quad Series is on, second round of VNSL mostly happened, opening weekend of U21 NPL Comp, lots of Rhinos activity (including a good run out today for some of our players in U17 against LBoro), our players in AoC squad gearing up for a game next weekend, and Roses Academy Camp next weekend!

Our fantastic U16A had a great start to their #RoadToNationals campaign with a 57-19 victory over Wakefield Wildcats last week and another against Allus 77-13 this week. In their first two rounds, the U14A superstars had a big win 59-11 v Harrogate Halos and a solid 39-11 win over YMCA. Keep it up girls, well done.

Prem had a rearranged match to play last week with Premier Romans coming out with a great result in our favour 63-42. Prem beat Tameside yesterday by just 4 to secure some much needed points on the table. Northern played twice since Christmas, losing 65-56 v Riverside and beating Brigg Blades 55-38.  Our squads in Prem and Northern include a mass of Leeds Athletic players who have come through the ranks, still at school and playing serious senior netball with some opponents often Superleague and national standard. WY Seniors had a good win on Saturday 42-27 against HiTech2 with an inexperienced side and some U16 debuts, well done! Our Senior Regional side lost to a very experienced Hallam, but great tests for our young athletes. Our young Netball Nights squad lost their game last week, but lots of learning playing against seniors.

The biggest shout out this week goes to our young HiFive players. Last week they had their last session before their first league match, combined with an information session about HiFive with Mark. This week many girls took to the court for their first Leeds Athletic match. How exciting! This is how they did Hi5(1) lost to Wakefield Phoenix 9-4, HI5(2) lost to YMCA (2) 4-16.  

In other WY Junior matches, the U12A played our U12B always a tough call 34-1 the score line to the A’s. U12(3) team had a close match and just lost out 10-12 to Phoenix. Our match reporter for the U14B declared a fantastic match putting in enormous effort resulting in a comfortable win 35-9 against Yorkshire Terriers. The U16B had a close, thrilling match against YMCA and came out with a win 28-25 perseverance and teamwork being key in this first round of the West Yorkshire League second phase.

This weekend we had lots of fixtures being played across the club, meaning in excess of 100 athletes taking part, which is fantastic. Lots of work goes into the background to make all this happen, so it is great to have some new helpers on board supporting the younger teams now that they are playing matches. Thanks everyone.

Please can we remind all club members and supporters, that permission to take photos or videos which include our opponents, has to be requested in advance through the league to the opposition in advance. Please contact Susie Stead one week in advance to make this request. We do not want to lose points or place the club in disrepute for the sake of not asking the question. 

Rhinos NPL matches are coming up as a good spectating opportunity, watch this space, and likewise Netball Europe is being held at Huddersfield in March so another good opportunity being advertised on social media.