Netball Super League | October round-up as international action takes centre stage

International netball enjoyed an action-packed October as Super League stars returned to the court all over the world.

Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Trinidad and Tobago all starred in the European and Americas World Cup Qualifiers ahead of the 2023 World Cup in Cape Town next summer.

Uganda returned to the UK earlier in the month to take on Northern Ireland and Wales before a three-test series against England, while the Vitality Roses continued their international spell down under in Australia.

European World Cup Qualifiers

Scotland and Wales secured their tickets to South Africa with brilliant performances throughout the Glasgow event.

Northern Ireland agonisingly missed out on a place after finishing third overall.

The Thistles and Feathers battled it out in a tense final match and Wales came away undefeated with a 58-51 victory to claim top spot.

Leeds Rhinos’ Nia Jones led Wales to their first World Cup since 2015, not qualifying last time out.

Bethan Dyke, Team Bath’s summer signing, was a force to be reckoned with throughout, hailed for her telepathic connection with Phillipa Yarranton and Georgia Rowe in the circle.

Scotland used their lightning-fast speed to whistle through their round robin matches, with Claire Maxwell’s composed leadership partnered with incredible performances from the likes of Emma Barrie and Iona Christian.

The Warriors narrowly missed out on a World Cup spot but ended their qualifiers on a high with a 61-32 win over the Isle of Man.

The Welsh Feathers are going to Cape Town 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

We are proud and excited to say that we will be travelling to South Africa next year to compete in the 2023 Netball World Cup! pic.twitter.com/NxH5EUYjK7

— Wales Netball | Pêl-Rwyd Cymru (@WalesNetball_) October 16, 2022

Americas World Cup Qualifiers

Shaquanda Greene-Noel catapulted Trinidad & Tobago to a spot at the 2023 World Cup with a second-place finish at the Americas qualifiers.

Jamaica hosted the qualifying event despite already having a spot at the World Cup due to their world ranking.

Celtic Dragons’ Greene-Noel helped her team to victories over seven teams, suffering defeat against only the hosts.

Her defending abilities shone on the court, snatching interceptions to help her team claw back against the undefeated Sunshine Girls.
But Trinidad & Tobago had to settle for second, qualifying for the World Cup alongside Barbados.

Player of the Tournament at the recent AFNA World Cup Qualifiers. 🥺. Thank You God. pic.twitter.com/XlVYQd6Mmh

— Shaquanda Greene-Noel (@QuandaNoel) October 25, 2022

Uganda’s tour of the UK

Uganda returned to the UK following their eye-opening performance at the 2022 Commonwealth Games for a wealth of international experience.

Kerry Almond made her debut for Northern Ireland in their first clash, narrowly losing out 36-31 to Uganda.

The Manchester Thunder veteran was joined by Leeds Rhinos partnership Michelle Magee and Caroline O’Hanlon as well as Surrey Storm’s own Niamh Cooper.

Proscovia Peace captained the She Cranes to wins against the Warriors and Feathers, dominating the court in both circles in Wales as she made an exciting switch to goalkeeper.

Jones captained a Welsh Feathers team that was abuzz with NSL talent.

Celtic Dragon’s player Yarranton was named player of the first match as she teamed up with Rowe.

But the power of Mary Cholhok coming off the bench for Uganda was too much to handle and Wales fell to two defeats.

The She Cranes ended their UK tour with three losses to England in a highly anticipated series in Nottingham and London.

What a series in Australia for @FadojuFunmi 🔥

The @Pulse_Netball athlete and #NSL2022 Young Player of the Season showed her defensive prowess on the international stage over the last week 👏

➡️ 32 deflections, 9 interceptions and 4 rebounds this series! pic.twitter.com/2TzkMno8VP

— Netball Super League (@NetballSL) November 3, 2022

Australia v England series

The Vitality Roses ended their October campaign down under in a dramatic three-part series against Australia.

Despite losing the series 3-0, England saw impressive performances by London Pulse’s Funmi Fadoju and Surrey Storm’s Sophie Drakeford-Lewis, who racked up a 94% shooting record over the series.

With the first game ending in an agonising 55-54 loss, the following two nail-biting games proved the Vitality Roses’ strength.