Netball South West
Regional League 1
Galmington 50, Carol Anne 48

GALMINGTON returned to winning ways when they met Carol Anne at Taunton Vale on Sunday.

In what was a close game throughout, the hosts were glad to have Hovelands’ Polly Ridgway on board, as she commanded the defence in her Regional League 1 debut.

Ridgway’s constant pressure lead to countless turnovers, which were gratefully received by Laura Lou Dyke (GA), whose movement and accurate shooting helped her side clinch the win by two goals.

Player of the match: Polly Ridgway; sponsor: Admiral School of Motoring

Regional League 2
Galmington Trident 47, Hucclecote Comets 36

TRIDENT looked up against it as second-placed Hucclecote Comets came to Taunton, but the hosts defied the league positions to take a great win.

The home side showed what they are truly capable of, getting off to a flyer and never looking back.

Jordyn Baker shot and moved well, frustrating the Hucclecote defence throughout, while Nicky Ferguson linked attack and defence with superb feeds into the circle.

Special mention goes to Nat Sexton, who got on court for her first game back at Regional level.

POM: Jordyn Baker, Jaz Chester, Nicky Ferguson; sponsor: Joseph Woods Builders

Somerset KO Cup
Galmington Hovelands 60, Yeovil Hendford 27

HOVELANDS stormed in to the next round of the Knockout Cup with a convincing win over Yeovil side Hendford.

Hovelands played with confidence and ease, turning the ball over through the excellent defensive work of trio Hannah Symes, Lydia Reeves and Laura Preece.

Shooters Polly Land and Nicki Berzina were both on form as Hoveland’s sparkling season continued.

POM: Laura Preece; sponsor: PW Pepperell & Son

Somerset KO Cup
Galmington Claremont 40, Yeovil Newton 32

CLAREMONT jumped, rolled and sprinted in to the next round of the Somerset KO Cup after taking the win over Newton at Taunton Vale.

The game swung back and forth, but every time Claremont looked up against it, they fought back harder.

Toni Smyth (GK) was superb, taking key interceptions, while at the opposite end of the court Charlotte Setter, Hannah Setter, Michelle Ley and Gina Sayer created beautiful passages of play.

POM: Hannah Setter; sponsor: Somerset County Sports

Somerset Division 3
Paulton Arrows 25, Galmington Newbarn 24

NEWBARN made the long journey to Paulton to take on Arrows.

Making her senior debut, Jessie Smyth (C) tore around the court, while veteran Tash Snow (GD) battled hard in defence.

This was a great performance by the club’s seventh side, but the final whistle came just too soon for them.

POM: Tash Snow; sponsor: Being Your Best

Galmington U16 44, St Agnes U16 46

GALMINGTON Under-16s took on St Agnes at the weekend, hunting for their first Regional League victory, but it wasn’t to be.

An excellent display of pinpoint shooting from young talent and player of the match Daisy West (GS) saw Galmington go goal-for-goal with their opponents for the entire match.

She was ably assisted by another heroic performance by Bea Renyard at GD.

With just a few minutes left on the clock the opposition nudged out in front to take the game by two goals, but Galmington could still hold their heads high.

POM: Daisy West; sponsor: Taunton School

In the Somerset Junior Tournament, there was a win and a loss for Galmington Under-14 A team and Under-14 B team, respectively.

The As were jumping for joy after their 17-11 victory against Yeovil, which came despite the bitterly cold conditions outdoors.

The Bs couldn’t manage a win, but were still smiling – and snug – after getting the opportunity to play indoors, as they lost 24-8 to hometown opponents Taunton.

Meanwhile a depleted Galmington Under-12 side took to the court in the freezing cold against Taunton NC.

Plagued with last-minute illness, the squad did so well against their local opponents.

Too many unforced errors saw Taunton capitalise on those mistakes to take the win, 14-8.

But as always Galmington’s shining stars were happy just to have been out playing the game.

Somerset County Gazette:

FOCUS: Laura Lou Dyke lines up the shot for Galmington. Pic: Ash Magill

***

Netball South West
Regional League 3 South
Taunton Vivary 43, TTNC Spartans 47

VIVARY anticipated a tough game, having lost to TTNC Spartans by six in their previous encounter, and the hosts started slowly with Spartans scoring several unanswered goals.

But Vivary soon found their rhythm to come back and inch ahead (9-8).

The second quarter saw Vivary refreshed and start well, scoring a couple of unanswered goals to slightly extend their lead.

Spartans, though, worked hard to turn the score around and left Vivary trailing 23-20.

Both teams came out fighting in the third quarter, battling to take the lead, and Vivary’s best quarter saw them close the gap to 35-34.

Unforced errors from Vivary allowed Spartans to extend their lead, but the hosts fought hard until the end to get within five goals.

Player of the match: Isla May; opposition’s POM: Lauren-Jade Griffiths; squad: Fee Grammer, Emily Tong, Freya Bryant, Faye Symons, Lauren Knight, Isla May, Lauren-Jade Griffiths, Gracie Stevens, Leila Aladin, Becca Holder; sponsor: Shine Hair Management

Somerset KO Cup
Taunton Tone 39, Wells Swans 40

TONE expected a tough game, with cold weather and changes to their squad.

Tone started well to finish the first quarter with a slight lead (13-12), and the game continued to be very close with the teams trading the lead back and forth.

Good defence and shooting allowed Tone to reach half-time with a 24-21 lead.

In the last quarter, Swans capitalised on their physical play to pull ahead and take the win by one goal.

Tone left knowing that they did everything they could but it wasn’t their day.

POM: Leila Aladin and Ria Binding; squad: Vicki Cornish, Leila Aladin, Freya Bryant, Meg Palmer, Rebecca Willy, Nicole Smith, Ria Binding and Melissa Cleverly; sponsor: The Black Horse Inn

Somerset Division 3
Taunton Tudor 37, Kingfishers 32

TUDOR started strongly, turning over several of Kingfishers’ centre passes and keeping possession well in the first quarter (13-5).

After bringing on a new GS and swapping round their defence, Kingfishers made a strong comeback in the second quarter but Tudor managed to hold onto their lead (18-17).

They maintained that advantage in the third quarter, managing to turnover several of Kingfishers’ passes, though some good defence from Kingfishers meant they weren’t able to extend their lead (27-26).

In the final quarter they continued to turnover Kingfishers’ centre passes, and some more focused play meant they were able to extend their lead and claim a good win.

POM: Verity Stone; squad: GS Zoe Stacey, GA Sophie Bond, WA Sian Blake, C Louise Frost, WD Ally Gabell, GD Verity Stone, GK Trish Hutchinson