Under 14s Sweep the Board at 1st Rally of the Season10 out of 10 for Cheshire starlets!

A fresh and icy Saturday morning in November and the Cheshire team assemble at the usual locations - Bupa and Tesco - at the most favourable hour of 6:30am! A long drive to Tyne and Wear but as the day unfolded it was to prove to be well worth it!

An 11am start for the U14 squads, one A squad, one B squad, both with just 8 players. The B squad started the day off with a fantastic display against South Durham. Just 16 minutes in total and the team notched up some 13 goals without any reply. A good start but was it a fluke? The first ever match and their first ever attempt at playing as a unit.

Their second match came against Tyne and Wear. Was it possible to play as well once again? Of course it was as they ploughed ahead to lead 5-0 at half time, stretching to a 15-3 full time result. An excellent display of netball with spot on shooting by Ellie Griffiths and Katie Powell. Well done girls, super game! Their next opponents were North Durham who put up a fight but a 7-0 lead at half time was a good spring board for a full time result of 14-2. Excellent defending from front to back ensured the team kept a clean sheet and the defenders kept smiling! Fantastic play Jess Fogarty, Lydia Ross and Emma Donald. Next came their toughest match so far – Lancashire. The team the squad knew they had to beat, the team they had the greatest desire to beat. The girls went out and fought hard in the first half but came in one goal down at 3-4 at half time. A team talk, a display of team unity and 8 minutes followed to finish with an unbelievable turnaround and a great win of 11-4. This left just one game to go to provide the B squad with as full sweep of 5 wins and this task came against North Cumbria. The team started well and went in at half time with an 8 goal advantage at 9-1. Some half time changes and the encouragement to enjoy the last 8 minutes of play resulted in a final score line of 14-2.

Throughout the whole day the B squad worked exceptionally well – better than I had ever imagined! With no centre player for the day Ella Harrison bravely stepped up and played the position as if it were her first choice. She fought well and ensured the game flowed smoothly between attack and defence. Captain for the day Ellie Griffiths was also exceptional. She led the team well, providing encouragement when necessary and ensuring the well being of all players. Well done Ellie! Every player in the squad performed exceptionally well. A huge congratulations and pat on the back for: Ella Harrison, Emma Donald, Katie Powell, Jordan Cooper, Jessica Fogarty, Lydia Ross, Ellie Griffiths and Sophia Tandy. 

And this just leaves the A squad. Could they perform as well as their U14 counterparts? Of course they could!

They started their campaign at a slightly later time of 11:20am against North Cumbria. A strong squad took to the court and a fantastic display of netball unfolded. From defence to attack the whole team played well to lead 7-3 at half time. The second half showed their dominance within the match with an 18-5 score line at the final whistle. Excellent shooting by Olivia Callender and Lizzie Sutton sealed the 13 goal victory.

Their second match came against North Durham. A slippy surface unveiled a few hairy moments and a slight injury gained to Alex Palin left her heading for first aid. The team however ploughed on and worked hard to lead by 5 goals at half time (6-1) and 13 at full time (14-1). The defence worked extremely well to keep out the goals and excellent centre play by Kate Buxton assisted in the quick reversal of defence to attack. The toughest match of the day came next against Lancashire. A strong Cheshire team took to the court, and so did a strong Lancashire team. With Lancashire scoring the first goal it seemed like a battle was on, but the girls dug deep and worked hard to take a 6-1 lead into the half time break. The second half was even tougher with Lancashire making some changes the second half finished tied at 3-3. Luckily the overall score for the match was a superb 9-4 win! Next came Tyne and Wear. A promising start witnessed some excellent play by all team members, especially Sophie Jones and Charlotte Stafford. This was rewarded with an 8-2 lead at half time and 14-4 win at full time. So then came crunch time. Could the A Squad win their final match and make it a clean sweep for the U14 squads? Up came South Durham who started quickly and scored first. They took a two goal lead before Cheshire replied and took a slight 3-2 lead into the break. The girls went back out and started slowly as South Durham took the lead. Cheshire then sprung into life and played tightly as a team to win 8-4. Excellent play by all players led to the success on the day. Captain for the Day, Serina Sidhu, showed some excellent leadership qualities and performed above all expectations. The shooting displayed was immense with the large number of goals being shared between Olivia Callender, Lizzie Sutton and Alex Palin. The entire A squad deserve a huge pat on the back. Well done goes to: Charlotte Stafford, Olivia Callender, Charlotte Banks, Serina Sidhu, Kate Buxton, Alex Palin, Sophie Jones and Elizabeth Sutton.

So there it was! 10 games for Cheshire U14 netball and 10 straight wins – 5 for the A squad and 5 for the B squad. A massive well done to all players who have made us – the coaches very proud and a huge thank you to our travelling fans – the parents!

Let’s hope the success continues at our next set of matches on Valentine’s Day 2009. A card and chocolates may be necessary for each coach to ensure success!!!

Click here to go to the Under 14s photo gallery from the day