NETBALL: Thunder and Falcons share the spoils

Honours ended even between Aircar Thunder and Falcons as they battled out a gripping 28-28 draw in the latest round of matches in the Market Harborough Netball League.

There was a sign of what was to come when the two sides were all-square after the first quarter.

It was Thunder who inched ahead by half-time through the commendable attacking play by youngster Ellie Chapman who has shone bright for the Aircare side this season.

Falcons were typically industrious and, thanks to the impressive teamwork of Grace Brooke and Liv Percival, they managed to snatch the lead from Thunder going into the final quarter.

Heather Wainwright pulled off some critical tip and turnovers in Thunder’s defensive third to bring the game back into contention and, in the end, the teams couldn’t be separated.

Another close encounter saw Snowfinders just edge out Knighton 40-38.

It was the young Snowfinders who were in the lead at the first break with goal attack Sophie Pounds and goal defence Gracie Barkworth impressing at either end of the court.

Knighton countered well, scoring an impressive 13 goals to Snowfinders’ eight to go into half-time with the advantage.

Going into the final quarter there were just five goals between the two sides with Knighton 32-27 up.

However, despite some fantastic centre court work by Rachel Pawley feeding into Tiffany Frost, Knighton struggled to hold on to the lead and Snowfinders found a way back to clinch a nail-biting tussle.

It proved to be a good weekend for close matches as another saw Aircare Lightning secure a 41-36 victory over Harborough Harriers.

Harriers held a one-goal advantage after the first quarter.

Lightning regrouped and made a few substitutions but it was not enough to counter the efficiency of play from the Harriers, for whom Wendy Cray impressed.

In the third quarter, Lightning found their form and, through the tenacious defence of goalkeeper Yvonne Moore, managed to turn over some key balls, giving goal attack Hannah Forman some vital chances on goal.

Harriers were down but certainly not out and came back fighting in the final quarter.

Play was end-to-end, with both sides scoring 11 goals apiece, but it was to be Lightning’s day in the end.

The experience of Foxton Mavericks showed as they claimed a 71-8 success over Welland Valley Blinders.

Mavericks started in a typically dominating fashion, establishing themselves in the game from the very first whistle and they held a 43-3 lead at half-time.

Going into the final quarter, Mavericks continued to extend their lead, however the Blinders dug in throughout and endeavoured until the final whistle.

There was also a comfortable win for Lutterworth Robins as they beat Foxton Flyers 52-19.

Despite the endeavours of the Foxton side, the Robins were in control thanks, in no small part, to the impressive play from goal attack Tiegan Harrison who was named player of the match by both the scorers and opposition.

Flyers showed great spirit, most notably through the exceptional centre court performance of Emma Payne who fed in beautifully to Evie Van-Nierop whose movement in the attacking D was second-to-none.

However, they had too much ground to make up as the Robins eased to victory.