Omega Netball Club News

Omega ER team face Harpenden in their regional fixture at St Albans today.   Harpenden were demoted at the end of last season, so this was likely to be a tough game.

A ropey opening minutes for Omega as they struggled to settle into their game and Harpenden punished them for this, taking not only Omega’s 1st but also their 2nd centre pass and notching up the goals on the scoreboard.  Omega took time to gain composure and play their game, but in the final minutes of the opening quarter, this was beginning to happen.   The 1st quarter ended with Harpenden leading 13-9.

A much cleaner 2nd quarter for Omega as they applied the pressure defensively and gained control of their play and with that, possession.   Only 1 forced error from Omega  was displayed in their court play  the entire quarter and they succeeded in limiting Harpenden to just 7 goals this quarter, whilst our attack play was on fire, with great linkage down court and interworking in the shooting circle, finished with great accuracy in goal conversion.  This resulted in Omega not only closing the deficit in the score, but taking the lead for the 1st time in the game and by half time, Omega were leading 26-20.

Quarter 3 saw more great play with Omega applying their zone defence and maintaining pressure on their opponents.  A couple of mis-communications in our attack play allowed Harpenden claw back a couple of goals and take the quarter 11-10 and ending the quarter 35-31 to Omega.

The final quarter and Omega are well aware that this game is theirs for the taking, but they must continue to play their game and not allow nerves and tension to set in.    An amazing quarter of netball from Omega as the forced many an error on Harpenden across the entire court and Omega were slick in taking their won possession downcourt to goal on each occasion.  A very accurate shooting quarter too, helping Omega to increase to a comfortable lead and a winning quarter score of 16 – 9 and a final score of 51-40.

A fantastic game, which built throughout the game with composure, patience and skill as the team settled into their play.  A well fought for turnaround from quarter 1 to an amazing final quarter and great win, with every player giving their all.

POM awarded by Harpenden – GS, Georgia Quinton.

Our second Regional fixture of the season and we’re already depleted with our regular GA, Emma Maidment having fractured her heel in the first game and Wing player, Nicola Rantell still out from long term injury, so new combinations are a must in this game.   In addition, several of the squad have picked up illness since last game and are not in their best form, so this game has potential to be a struggle. 

Omega start out meaning business, with a steal of the ball by GK, Mary Ogunseitan on Royston’s first centre pass and Omega are quick to convert the goal.  Omega also succeed in converting on their centre pass too and this looks to be set for a great game for the small squad if they can keep their composure and stamina for the whole game.  The entire team settle in quickly in this opening quarter and the tight defending play in Royston’s shooting third by all 4 Omega players in the area (Lucy Andrews at C, Stephanie Winfield at WD, Samantha Abbott at GD and Mary Ogunseitan at GK), applies pressure and forces many an error which Omega capitalise on.  A fantastic start to the game with the new shooting combination of Hayley Kruse at GS and Georgia Quinton at GA proving their worth with shooting accuracy and availability and the first quarter ends 17-9 for Omega. 

A positive team chat and the team retake the court ready to continue to fight for the win.   Another display of composed netball from the Omega team this quarter, but on a couple of occasions, they struggle to be available for the centre pass and Royston win possession.  However, once again some great defending play across all thirds of the court sees several interceptions, including from players in the midcourt (WD Leah Badham and C Lucy Andrews) and in our shooting third (GA Georgia Quinton).  A superb interception from GK Mary as she is quick on her feet and takes the ball from the Royston GS and the team link well mid court to take it the ball to our shooting third, but the ball is lost in our shooting end and the ball returns for Royston take the goal.

Going into the 3rd quarter, Omega have a comfortable lead with a score of 30-18, but they have been told not to sit complacent and to continue playing as they have been so far in the game.   This quarter, the shooters are on fire with 100% conversion for GS Hayley Kruse, scoring 12 of the 17 goals scored.  Likewise the defence continue to apply tight pressure on Royston, allowing GK Mary to steal on 5 occasions.   We also see great feeds to our shooters from WA, Zoe O’Neill and C, Lucy Andrews, which find our shooters with ease.    GS, Hayley also intercepts a goal line pass by Royston with her long arm-span and she is quick to punish them with another fantastic goal for her team.    An amazing quarter by all players, increasing the goal difference by 19 goals going into the final quarter. 

The team return to court with a positive outlook and once again give their all to the game.  This quarter it’s GA Georgia Quinton’s turn for the 100% accuracy in her shooting, converting 8 of the 12 goals scored by Omega.  The strong defensive play continues in the same vein across the entire team and is tight, resulting in 8 turnovers, however these are matched with 8 forced errors in the quarter.   The game ends with a fantastic win for Omega with a final score of 59-38 and the team have played their socks off!

An absolute cracker of a game to watch, with every player giving 100% at all times.  Some wild and erratic passing at times, but when composed, Omega were solid in their play and proved a tough opposition.   

Royston awarded Player of the Match to C, Lucy Andrews….well done Lucy!

Almost a full squad for the start of season, with Nicola Rantell still recovering from an injury…she will hopefully return to court very soon, but great to have her on the bench to support the team today.  

A nervous and unsettled opening quarter for the 1st Regional game of the season, with Hornets taking an early lead of 3 goals in the first few minutes of the game.   Omega compose by mid quarter and the defence fight hard to keep the team in the game, gaining several turnovers to allow the team to close the score to 1 goal, but the accuracy of the Hornets shooters when they have the ball, allows them to take the 1st quarter with a score of 12-8.

The second quarter sees Hornets apply the pressure, implementing their zone defence and Omega are not driving through the barrier to maintain possession, which results in Hornets gaining the possession and punishing with goal conversion on most occasions.  By half time, the score has widened to 24-15 to Hornets.

Omega keep their heads high in the 3rd quarter and again give their all to take the ball to goal, but the defending play by Hornets, once again sees Omega making errors and loosing possession on several occasions.  The Omega defence are on fire as they apply pressure on the opposition shooters and it’s their turn to turnover the possession in our favour.   The linking in Omega’s play is great at times, but silly errors prove very costly throughout the whole court play.   An injury in the final shot at goal to Omega’s GA, Emma Maidment, sees her limping off court to end the quarter and taking the bench for the final quarter. 

Going into the final quarter, Omega have a lot to do to contest for the game with a score of 24-37 to Hornets.  The team focus and whilst Hornets bench increase the noise level, Omega players respond positively and each and every player gives everything they have left in them to fight for the game.  An amazing quarter from all players, with every defender and mid-courter intercepting the play throughout, resulting in 11 turnovers for the team.  They compose their attack play and tighten their defence further, restricting Hornets to just 4 goals, whilst gaining 12 themselves.   A fantastic quarter, albeit too late to gain the win or the 2 points for the table, but some new combinations explored and some great promise for future games.  A full game like this quarter and the result could have been different.

A greatly contested game, with grit and determination displayed to the end.  Well done all and a much deserved Player of the Match awarded by the opposition to Mary Ogunseitan who definitely unsettled the Hornets shooters consistently throughout. 

A rematch today between Omega 1 and Thoroughbreds in the second half of the East Region League.  A home game for Omega and after having lost by a close 4 goals in the 1st round, Omega are keen to maintain their winning streak and make this their 3rd consecutive win.

A slow and slightly erratic start to the game whilst both teams take a little time to compose.  Both teams falter and the first goal for each team is a result of a turnover won by their team, from which they secured their first goal.  A fair few wayward balls in our attacking play allows Thoroughbreds to remain close in score, but the team are clearly determined and defend well when not in possession of the ball, from mid-court to the defending circle.   Strong circle defending by Steph Winfield in the first quarter sees her win possession for her team on 5 occasions, which contributed to the win of the opening quarter, 8-7.

The team settle well in to the second quarter and once again their defensive play is on point, but this time starting from the shooters, right the way down court, resulting in possession being won for held ball by the opposition on a few occasions.  A more controlled attacking quarter too, as the team compose and display coherence in their team play.    Omega begin to open the lead in this quarter, but are aware the win is not yet confirmed and they have to remain composed throughout.  By mid game the score is 19-14.

The third quarter continues in the same vein with some fantastic defensive play by the entire team, rattling and applying the pressure on Thoroughbreds consistently.  This again resulting in some held ball calls in Omega’s favour and coupled with a clean attacking quarter with very few unforced errors, Omega managed to increase their score due to the 13 goals secured and limiting Thoroughbreds to just 7.

The final quarter and Omega are up by 11 goals at the start, but they remind themselves that the game is not yet won and they still need to maintain control and discipline to the end.  Superb circle defence by both Sam Abbott and Steph Winfield results in 9 intercepts and loose ball pick ups between them, allowing the team to secure a great end result of 44-38.

The defence this game from both the circle defence and the team as a whole, played a massive part in contributing to the end result.  The circle defence limited Thoroughbreds to only 7 goals each quarter and the pressure applied across the whole court, rattled the opposition and won many turnovers for Omega.  A slow start, but a great performance from all players, showing determination and fight to the end.  A great result for the team, which will alter their league table position favourably and holds them in good stead for the next game.

Thoroughbreds awarded Omega’s Player of the Match to GS, Georgia Quinton for accuracy in her shooting.  Well done Georgia!