Whalsay hopes hit in netball’s first division

Whalsay’s division one netball hopes took a dent last week when they went down to fourth-placed Kinetics. A victory for Loungers meant they went level at the top while Kiwis also kept the pressure on with another win. In division two Wastside remained in touch with leaders Unst while Mavericks and Scalloway Juniors both won in the third division.

Division One

Kinetics 33, Whalsay 24

Kinetics and Whalsay took to the court for the second week in a row. Kinetics were keen to improve on last week’s performance, as Whalsay had pipped them to the post with a one-goal victory.

The first quarter was tight with both defences working hard to make life difficult for the attacking players. Kinetics defenders Lesley Spence and Emma Gray looked particularly sharp and this helped Kinetics secure a two-goal lead.

During the second quarter good supporting play from Kinetics’ Louise Fraser and Fiona Shearer led to increased shooting opportunities for Kirsti Leask and Sarah Grogan. At the other end Whalsay shooters Vaila Kay and June Williamson, who had less opportunities to score, converted some impressive long-range shots. Kinetics 17-12 at half time.

During the second half Whalsay never gave up, and on many occasions managed to reduce the margin of Kinetics’ lead. Natalie Polson and Sarah Kay, in particular, made some fine interceptions in the Whalsay defence. However, Kinetics remained calm and confident throughout and a good team performance led to a 33-24 win.

Emma Gray was Kinetics player of the match while Natalie Polson stood out for Whalsay.

Challengers 17, Kiwis 37

Kiwis intercepted the first pass and it went straight into their shooters who opened the scoring. Challengers never recovered and Kiwis pulled ahead with a huge lead of 22-6 at half time.

With some changes to both teams the second half started and Challengers were getting the ball into their shooters, but the ball just wasn’t finding the net. Kiwis quickly passed the ball back up to their end and even with great effort from Challengers defence could not stop them shooting.

This game was fast and played in good humour and players of the match were Dianne Thomson for Challengers and Julie Kirkness for Kiwis.

AHS 23, Loungers 30

AHS had just returned from winning their quarter-final match in the Scottish Schools competition earlier in the day.

The opening quarter saw fast and furious play from both sides with AHS seeing more of the ball in their shooting circle than Loungers. Jennifer Thomson and Louise Moar defended well for Loungers as they forced errors from the AHS shooters. Loungers began to settle and edged into the lead 7-6 by the end of the first period.

The second quarter saw a welcome return to Vicki Henderson as she replaced Hazel Uren at centre. This was Vicki’s first game back following an ankle injury and she had an immediate impact as Loungers increased the lead to 14-9 at half time.

By the second half AHS were showing signs of tiredness as passes went adrift and unforced errors crept into their play. Nevertheless their play was competitive and fluent in parts with Margaret Johnson intercepting in the circle and feeding the ball into the attack, ably supported by Emma Leask. However, it was a big ask of the school side to compete after their earlier efforts at the Kelvin Hall Loungers went on to win 23-30.

Jennifer Thomson and Sophie Leyland were awarded the players of the match.

Division Two

McEwans 33, Wastside 45

Wastside started strongly and netted three quick goals before Da McEwans could reply. The remainder of the quarter was end to end with Wastside maintaining their lead through Catherine Henry’s accurate shooting.

The second quarter was a lot closer, with Maggie Irvine and Kristen Anderson having a good mid-court battle and covering the entire court. Although Joanne Stewart was netting shots from all over the circle for McEwans, Wastside were still ahead at half time.

The second half was as fast-paced and frantic as the first had been and Wastside went on to win convincingly.

Players of the match were Diane Irvine and Emma Nicolson for McEwans and Catherine Henry for Wastside.

Division Three

Scallywags 21, Mavericks 28

This game began with fast play from both sides. Accurate passing and precise shooting gave Mavericks a 7-4 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter saw Scallywags make several silly mistakes, enabling Mavericks to take full advantage, and the score at half time was 16-9.

After a team talk Scallywags started the third quarter eager to pull back. Nicola Smith and Rhea Moncrieff were feeding excellent balls into the Scallywags circle from which the shooters were able to extend their tally.

Both teams fought hard to the end but it was the Mavericks’ night for the points. Players of the match were Nicola Smith and Laura Saunders for Scallywags and Amber Inkster for Mavericks.

Scalloway Juniors 24, Ness 23

Both teams fought hard for the first goal in a fast and feisty opening quarter. With a few well-timed interceptions, Scalloway Juniors managed to edge ahead of Ness at the end of the first quarter with a score of 6-4.

Ness started the next quarter with tight defence all over court. WD Sonja Jamieson proved to be hard work for her opponent Hannah Parkin, despite her hard work and fast runs out at centre passes. The Juniors stepped up their game with their shooters linking well in the circle and GA Rowan Nicholson moving skilfully to help her team take a bigger lead of 14-7.

For the third quarter Leona Leask came on at GK for Ness and supported her team well throughout the strong attack. Effective lobs from Ness centre Hazel Bairnson proved to be a weakness for the Juniors but Scalloway keeper Erin Sandison worked quickly, leaving the score 21-15 in Scalloway Juniors favour.

The last quarter saw Scalloway Juniors lose their pace and make a few mistakes. Ness took full advantage and made a great comeback with some excellent, spot-on shooting from Caroline Wood. The game ended with Scalloway Juniors just holding on to win.

Players of the match were Hazel Bairnson for Ness and Karen Bannister for Scalloway Juniors.