The Semi-Finals are upon us. A Semi-Final against Severn Stars. A home Semi-Final to boot. In front of thousands of Thunder fans is what the Manchester Thunder staff and players have dreamt of since the start of the season. It’s finally here and we are excited to share this experience with the Thunder fans!
Looking back to our game against Severn Stars in March at Worcester Arena, we came out victorious by 15 goals but it was much closer than the goal difference looks. Two of the quarters, Q1 and Q4 only had a 3 goal difference and 1 goal difference respectively. Stars pushed us all of the way and have comfortably got into the final 4 for the first time in their history after some outstanding performances this season.
We finished the season with 1,200 goals. 66 goals a game and conceded 844, which comes to 47 goals a game. Our game against Stars was 65-60, which is below average for goals scored and conceded. Karen and the coaching staff will have been working on changing that for the upcoming game.
Sigi Burger, Betsy Creak, Lefe Rademan and Suzie Liversidge combined for 60 goals against Loughborough Lightning last round and had a 95% shooting success against a strong Lightning. The Thunder defence will have been working on counteracting the attacking skill of Jess Shaw, Gab Marshall and co combining with Stars’ strong shooting circle.
Now, on to your Manchester Thunder, we closed off the regular season with a very strong performance against Leeds Rhinos. A 36 goal winning margin was just what Karen and the coaching staff will have wanted leading into this game. We looked back earlier this week on social media at the game, so we won’t bore you with a repeat but there were outstanding performances given by every single player that stepped onto the court. Every player did their job, every player coming from the bench showed why they should be on court and we left nothing on court.
It must be a coach’s dream to have 12 players that perform at such a high-level week in, week out and are able to work with any combination. We saw Lois Pearson and Amy Carter play at Wing Attack last week, playing with Elmerè van der Berg, Paige Reed and Anya Williams with great purpose, skill and class.
The defensive end saw all 4 circle defenders get great court time in preparation for the semi-final; registering 6 deflections, 8 intercepts, 6 pickups and 19 gains between them. The circle rotated throughout the game, each combination turning the ball over and forcing the ball to go quickly up the other end. There were moments of pure brilliance from each player on court. It will be a performance that Karen will want her players to put on for the wonderful Thunder crowd.
The numbers over the season have been incredible, Elmerè sits 7th in the goal scoring charts. Shadine sits 2nd in the intercepts chart and 4th in the gains chart, with Nat Metcalf and Amy sitting at 1st and 9th in the feeds chart. The other chart we love to see is the penalties chart, there are zero Thunder players sitting pretty on that chart.
We really hope you are able to join us LIVE at Belle Vue for the semi-final against Severn Stars. We hope you are there to cheer on your Thunder girls and meet them afterwards. If you haven’t got a ticket, ensure you get one.
Join us from 1.30pm, where you can watch a great game of Men’s netball where Manchester Spartans take on Thames Mavericks for the first time ever. Spartans who finished 2nd in the EMMNA Nationals 2023 and will be going for the trophy in August would love your support as they aim to grow men’s netball across Manchester and the North.
The semi-final game between Thunder and Stars will be live on Sky Sports. This isn’t an event you’ll want to miss. Jo Trip and her Severn Stars are going to bring the fight to Thunder. They will want to be in their first Grand Final in their last season in the NSL for now. We want to go for our 5th Super League trophy.
Karen Greig, Thunder’s Head Coach and Franchise Director said, “It’s the Semi-Final time again and we couldn’t be happier than to be playing at home in front of our home crowd.”
“It’s going to be a really tough one this year and whilst we have beaten Stars on both occasions this season, Semi-Finals always hit different.”
“Stars have never been in a Semi before and with the sad news they won’t be continuing beyond this season they have nothing to lose. We have had a solid week of training, asked questions of each other and left it all out on the court, we are chomping at the bit to get going and can’t wait to hit the court running. Thunder family make some noise we need you to be our 8th player more than ever.
Game Day Details
Location:
Belle Vue Arena
Timings:
1.30pm – Doors open
1.45pm – Curtain raiser game: Spartan’s Mens vs Thames Mavericks Men’s
(The curtain raiser games are included in the cost of your ticket)
4.00pm – Main NSL game: Manchester Thunder vs Severn Stars
The game will consist of 4 x fifteen minute quarters, with a 4 minute break between quarters 1 and 3, and a 12 minute break at half time.
The game is scheduled to finish at 5.20pm, where we will be announcing the winner of the raffle plus awarding our Player of the Match. Once players have warmed down, there will be an opportunity to line up along the side of the court and take selfies and get autographs from the Thunder players. Don’t forget to tag us! @thundernetball
The second Semi-Final of Loughborough Lightning vs London Pulse will be available to stream on Youtube or watch on Sky Sports Mix at 6pm.
Tickets:
Tickets are available to purchase online until 10am on Saturday 22nd June 2024 via our ticketing partner Ticketline by clicking here.
If you are looking to purchase group tickets (10 or more) please click here.
There will be a very limited amount of tickets available on the door, and you will be able to pay using card or cash.
Where to Watch:
The game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Mix and Sky Sports Youtube from 3.30pm.
We will also be giving live updates on our Twitter feed which you can view here.
As we prepare for our Semi-Final, we have put together everything you need to know ahead of the game, from how to buy tickets, where to go when you arrive, what you can and can’t bring with you, detailed timings and more! Click here to find out more.
Our Opposition – Severn Stars
Head Coach:
Jo Trip
2024 Results:
Round 1: Stars 57 | Rhinos 41
Round 2: Stars 67 | Sirens 38
Round 3: Bath 44 | Stars 72
Round 4: Stars 50 | Thunder 65
Round 5: Pulse 47 | Stars 54
Round 6: Dragons 48 | Stars 46
Round 7: Mavericks 56 | Stars 58
Round 8: Stars 72 | Storm 55
Round 9: Stars 52 | Lightning 68
Round 10: Thunder 61 | Stars 46
Round 11: Stars 50 | Pulse 72
Round 12: Stars 56 | Dragons 41
Round 13: Sirens 50 | Stars 61
Round 14: Storm 42 | Stars 69
Round 15: Stars 59 | Mavericks 55
Round 16: Rhinos 56 | Stars 61
Round 17: Stars 72 | Bath 57
Round 18: Lightning 72 | Stars 60
Current Placing = 4th (36 points)
Current Form = LWWWWWWLLLWWLWLWWW
2023 Results:
Round 7: Stars 56 | Thunder 63
Round 18: Thunder 74 | Stars 551
2023 Placing = 6th (21 points)
Players to Watch:
“Jo Trip will have her team fired up and raring. They’ve proven themselves to be a tough side to beat with their zonal defence and Sigi Burger has been unstoppable at times in their attack unit. It’s key we break and unsettle their attack unit early if we are to have success and that’s something we have prepared for in training this week.”
