Netball Super League | Where to Watch: Round 6

We look ahead to the round six of the Netball Super League (NSL) in 2024, with all the vital information about where to watch and follow the action over the next few days.

As round six of the NSL flies towards us, let’s take a look at the match-ups that fans have got to look forward to this weekend.

London Pulse travel north to face Leeds Rhinos in Hull on Friday 22 March in a match that will be broadcast on Sky Sports YouTube.

On Saturday 23 March, fans can watch the only currently unbeaten team, Manchester Thunder, host reigning champions Loughborough Lightning live on BBC Sport.

All the details on how to watch these unmissable matches can be found here, along with how to keep up to date on all the other games across the weekend.

Leeds Rhinos v London Pulse – First Centre Pass at 19:30 Friday 22 March

This sold out game sees two teams looking for a win after losses in round five. London Pulse will want to fight back after their 47-54 loss to Severn Stars, and Head Coach Sam Bird will be looking for a stronger start than the 11-17 first quarter score that they put out at home last week. The attacking combination of Berri Neil and Nichole Taljaard has begun to grow over the past few rounds, giving the team the luxury of different options in the shooting circle. And with Funmi Fadoju creating turnover after turnover at the other end of the court, Pulse will pose a real challenge to Leeds on their home court. Despite a 71-55 loss to reigning champions Loughborough Lightning in round five, Leeds Rhinos can take a lot of confidence from goal shooter Joyce Mvula’s performance in the game. She shot 43 goals at 93% and combined well with Emma Magee in the goal attack position. This wasn’t enough to earn Rhinos their second win of the season though, so Head Coach Liana Leota will be asking for more from her team back in front of a home crowd this week.

Leeds Rhinos Player to Watch: Cassie Howard made her NSL debut for Leeds Rhinos in the 2023 season and has grown in confidence this year, earning her spot in the Yorkshire side’s starting seven week after week. She has consistently performed well, particularly defensively, for the side in 2024 and in round five she picked up five deflections and three gains. Rhinos will be relying on more dynamic defence from the young midcourter as they face Pulse this weekend.

London Pulse Player to Watch: Look out for more league leading performances this week from Funmi Fadoju who currently sits at the top of the league leaderboards for intercepts, deflections and gains! She also took the goal keeper position in Eboni Usoro-Brown’s Team of the Week from round five. Her elevation should challenge Joyce Mvula’s aerial style of play, making for an enticing battle for fans to watch on court.

Where can I watch?

You can watch on Sky Sports YouTube, the first centre pass is at 19:30. Click below to watch:

International viewers can watch on NetballPass here.

Manchester Thunder v Loughborough Lightning – First Centre Pass at 17:00 Saturday 23 March

Loughborough Lightning travel to Manchester on Saturday to face the only team remaining unbeaten in NSL 2024 so far, Manchester Thunder. After a win at home last week against Leeds Rhinos, Lightning will be keen to stamp their authority on the league this year if they can win away at Belle Vue. Manchester Thunder, on the other hand, will want to deliver another impressive performance for their home fans. With standout performances in the last few rounds from goal attack Lois Pearson and defender Josie Huckle, Head Coach Karen Greig will be confident that her side can continue their successful start to the season against the reigning champions.

Manchester Thunder Player to Watch: Lois Pearson put out a standout performance in round five, earning the Experience Kissimmee Player of the Match Award and being selected in Eboni Usoro-Brown’s Team of the Week. Notching up 32 goals at 96% accuracy in round five, Pearson can always be relied on to deliver at the post, but she also plays a vital role in Thunder’s wider attacking structure. She took 32 centre pass receives in their round five win, working seamlessly with Nat Metcalf to get the ball into the hands of their goal shooters. Can she repeat this impressive performance against the reigning champions on Saturday?

Loughborough Lightning Player to Watch: Mid-courter Nat Panagarry will be key to Lightning’s success against Thunder’s trademark clinical and composed style. She is relentless in defence, calm and composed in attack, and reliably delivers pin-point accurate feeds to goal shooter Mary Cholhok. In round five she provided 22 feeds into the shooting circle and picked up an intercept, a deflection, and a gain. She was selected in Eboni Usoro-Brown’s Team of the Week in the centre position and will need to repeat this strong performance if Loughborough Lightning are to end Manchester Thunder’s so-far perfect run in NSL 2024.

Where can I watch?

You can watch on BBC Sport, BBC iPlayer and on the Red Button, the first centre pass is at 17:00. Click here to watch.

International viewers can watch on NetballPass here.

The rest of the round

On top of our broadcast games, there are three more matches taking place on Saturday 23 March that you can buy tickets to watch live, or follow the action on X.

Strathclyde Sirens host Saracens Mavericks at 2pm. This is Sirens’ second consecutive home game after a difficult run of away fixtures to begin the season. In the last four meetings of these two sides, the victory has always gone to the home side. Will this little piece of history inspire Strathclyde Sirens, who are still searching for their first win of the season, across the line?

Next up is the LexisNexis Cardiff Dragons against Severn Stars at 5pm, who will be riding high after their round five win against London Pulse at the Copper Box Arena. Stars and Dragons are two teams with plenty of grit and determination, so expect a fiery match with both teams leaving it all on the court in search of their next NSL win. Watch out for the wing attacks on each team, with Khanyisa Chawane and Jess Shaw both sitting in the top five for feeds this season and proving crucial components of their teams’ success.

Finally, fans can look forward to Surrey Storm facing Team Bath at 6pm at Surrey Sports Park. Mikki Austin’s side will be looking to put out a strong performance to bounce back from their defeat last weekend against Manchester Thunder. Meanwhile Team Bath continue their search for a consistent four quarter performance that will allow them to really challenge this former top four side. The battle between young England Roses goal keeper Jayda Pechova and Ugandan shooting star Proscovia Peace will certainly be one to keep an eye on!

If you would like to go down to any of this weekend’s games, head over to our tickets page where you will find links to all of the team’s ticket pages.

If you can’t make it to the games, you can keep up to date with all the action with updates at half time and full time on the @NetballSL Twitter account. You can also see all the results from round three as they come in on our fixtures & results page.

To keep up with the latest news, make sure to follow the @NetballSL on X, Instagram and TikTok, Netball Super League on Facebook and LinkedIn, and subscribe to our newsletter.

Photo credit: Ben Lumley