TeamBath have named an exciting and powerful 15-strong netball squad that will bid to win back the national elite Co-operative Superleague title this season.
Competition for places in the TeamBath squad for the 2008/9 Superleague campaign was intense – as witnessed by the fact it features 10 members of England’s 18-strong long squad for the new season.
They are Sara Bayman, Eboni Beckford-Chambers, Jo Binns, Pamela Cookey, Sasha Corbin, Rachel Dunn, Stacey Francis, Tamsin Greenway, Serena Guthrie and Geva Mentor.
Those 10, like all of the members of the 15-strong TeamBath squad, have already played for TeamBath in earlier Superleague campaigns.
Head coach Jess Garland, also a former TeamBath player, said she was delighted to be able to select a team with such a strong combination of youth, experience and flair.
But she said despite commanding such a strong squad, winning back the Superleague title won’t be easy.
She said: “The Superleague gets increasingly competitive each year and we are determined more than ever to regain the title this year after what was a challenging season last year.
“However the silver lining for us was that it enabled us to blood some of our young talented players who this year now combine with ANZ returning players Geva Mentor and Tamsin Greenway as well as other national squad players Sara Bayman, Jo Binns, Rachel Dunn, to name but a few. It is a very exciting group to coach and we have had some great training sessions before the players left for their England tour, including a conclusive win over Wales in a spotlight game.”
She added: “I'm also really enjoying combining the knowledge and expertise of Jan Crabtree and Anna Mayes in what is a new-look, exciting coaching combination.
“The players are keen to get the season started and we can't wait for the first home fixture against Northern Thunder on 25th October. We can promise a really entertaining game with some new skills and tricks on show.”
TeamBath’s netballers won both of the first two Superleagues, but finished third in the league phase of the competition last season – a season when the TeamBath squad was depleted by players representing England at the World Championships, playing in a new professional league in Australia and new Zealand, and by injuries.
The 2008/9 Superleague, which gets underway towards the end of this month, will feature nine teams for the first time, with the addition of a Glasgow Wildcats team.
TeamBath open their campaign with a trip to Celtic Dragons on Friday 24th October. They play their first home match against Northern Thunder on Saturday 25th October, starting at 3.30pm. Tickets are available now.
For further details and for a full fixture list, see the netball play Superleague pages on the TeamBath website at http://www.teambath.com/?page_id=4165
The full TeamBath squad for the 2008/9 Co-operative Superleague is
Shooters
Pamela Cookey Kirsty Delves Rachel Dunn Tamsin Greenway Monique Wood
Mid-court Sara Bayman Jo Binns Sasha Corbin Claire Elsley Serena Guthrie
Defence Eboni Beckford-Chambers Gemma Fletcher Stacey Francis Geva Mentor Sam Perry
