| TRACEY NEVILLE TO BE UNVEILED |
Netball
in the North East is bracing itself for a brave new era after the region’s
only top flight franchise bagged one of the sport’s biggest stars.
Team
Northumbria will today unveil Tracey Neville as their new head coach ahead of
the 2010/11 Super League campaign.
And
the 81-times capped ex-England star can’t wait to set about reviving the
fortunes of a franchise which struggled to avoid last season’s wooden
spoon.
“This
is a great move for me and a fantastic challenge,” said the 33-year-old,
who will lead TN into action at their new £30m Sport Central home.
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 Ex-England star Alex Wood has called on the North East's netball community to get behind the region's only Super League franchise ahead of next season's move to Sport Central. Wood stepped up to the head coach's role against Leeds this week after a family bereavement forced Barbara Brown to miss the final game of an inconsistent campaign. And after the Carnegie club sentenced Team Northumbria to yet another defeat - picking up a 67-53 win at Westgate - the veteran shooter went on the offensive in a bid to rally support. "The move to Northumbria's new £30m facility is very exciting but it's time the region's netball community really backed their top flight franchise," said Wood. "At the same time a decision needs to be made on where netball at the university is heading. "If a sound plan is put in place and the team gets the support it deserves then this part of the world is the perfect place to grow a Super League franchise." |
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| SELL-OUT CLASH TO END SEASON |
 Team Northumbria can avoid the Super League wooden spoon with victory against Leeds Carnegie in Monday night's final fixture of the season.
The Sky Sports cameras - and a capacity crowd - will be at the Westgate Centre for Sport (7.30pm start) as Barbara Brown's team look to stifle former TN favourite Carla Dziwoki.
And the home side know that victory will see them leapfrog Celtic Dragons and steer clear of bottom spot.
"I've always felt confident we can beat Leeds but we need to be at our best," said Brown. "It's important we finish the season on a positive note."
TN's last game of the 2009/10 campaign sold out last week and fans are advised to arrive early.
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| BROWN CALLS FOR CONSISTENCY |
 Barbara Brown has called for consistency from her Team Northumbria Netball Super League stars.
The North East franchise fell to a disappointing 73-43 defeat to high flying Northern Thunder, despite enjoying encouraging spells throughout the match.
“It was a really fast paced match and I thought we played well in patches,” said Brown. “But we need to achieve a level between the highs and the lows.”
“We made a few mistakes and teams like Northern will punish you as we found out a few times tonight.”
With England internationals Jade Clark and Sara Bayman in the Bury based franchise Brown’s side were always in for a torrid time against a Thunder side already in the play-offs.
“Sally Smith had a good game but coming up against two England players in the middle of the court is always going to be tough,” she said.
“Our heads seem to drop toward the end but we have to cut out some of the naivety and errors in our game.
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| YOUNG GUNS SHOOTING FOR GLORY |
Barbara Brown is confident her young guns will shoot to win next season after the Team Northumbria playcaller defended the decision to blood her kids. Mavericks eased to a 63-30 win to push TN closer to the foot of the Super League table.
But summer signing Darcie Worsdale played all four periods for the first time since her close-season switch to Tyneside.
And fellow rookie Josie Pointon pulled out all the stops to prove she has a big part to play in TN’s future. Both players have experienced a steep learning curve after quitting Staffordshire for a stab at Super League glory.
But Brown said: “I was really pleased with the way both of them responded to the challenge against a very good Mavericks side. |
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| BROWN PLAYS THE GENERATION GAME |
 Barbara Brown will look to blood the next generation of Netball Super League stars before the end of the season after accepting Team Northumbria are treading water.
The North East’s only top flight franchise face the prospect of their worst regular season finish following a 49-34 loss to fellow strugglers Loughborough.
But Brown will risk the wooden spoon as she looks to build for the future and aid development of the sport in her region.
“If we had the chance to finish in the top four and compete in the playoffs things would be different,” she said.
“But I’ve talked at length with the people at Northumbria University about how they see their franchise moving forward and youth development is the key.
“I am prepared to take defeats like Loughborough on the chin if it means I can give court time to some of our younger players. |
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