T
he season got off to a flying start
back in November when we
finished runners-up in the county
tournament. We started well with a
comfortable 9-4 win against local rivals
Taunton School, and managed to remain
unbeaten right through to the final,
recording victories over Yeovil College,
King's Bruton, Queen's, Bruton School for
Girls, Wellington and Richard Huish.
Agonisingly we lost to Millfield 5-4 in the
final, but having been 4-0 down at halftime,
it showed a real sense of grit and
fortitude to stage such a spirited
fightback. As runners-up, we proceeded
through to the Regional round to
represent Somerset against nine other
South West counties. This is the second
time in ten years that we've managed to
get through to the regionals, an
achievement that is testament to the
talent, hard work and determination of
the entire squad.
The 2012 season also brought with it
some fresh faces, with the likes of Gussy
Hydleman and Rosie Dymond adapting
quickly and positively to the vast
difference in pace and physicality of
netball at first team level.
Our first match against Wellington was a
keenly contested game with Wellington
edging in front by the end of the first
quarter. Though we fought with great
resilience, we couldn't quite catch them
and ended up losing 20-24 - Melissa
McFarlane was particularly impressive as
GS. We then faced Queen's who were
always going to be aggressive and
dynamic. Queen's led at half-time by four
goals, but a spirited fightback in the third
quarter saw us edge our way into a twogoal
lead with two minutes to go.
Disappointingly, Queen's scored twice in
the dying moments to draw the game, but
it was a great all-round effort - Flora
Evans and Hattie Kean played fantastically
well.
Next was a triangular tournament against
West Buckland and Millfield. We beat
West Buckland 15-13 in a tight and
competitive match which saw King's lead
throughout in a terrific all-round team
performance. Special mention goes to
Melissa McFarlane who didn't miss a shot
the entire game! Millfeld was a slightly
different story and was a game of two
halves. At half-time we trailed by just four
goals, but energy levels dropped in the
second half, and Millfield took full
advantage of turnover balls.
It was a brilliant display of fluent, skilful
netball to win 33-13 against Exeter.
Movement and control of the ball was
outstanding, and Issy Germain and Flora
Evans played some of the best netball of
the season. We dominated again against
Stoodley Knowle, winning convincingly
25-6. Seven goals up after the first
quarter, we comfortably held on to our
lead for the duration of the match, with
massive contributions from Issy Germain
and Hilary Moorhead.
Blundell's was an exciting and highly nervewracking
game for players and spectators
alike. We played some stunning netball,
but Blundell's were tough opponents who
did not give up. Hilary Moorhead and Jess
Kennedy were excellent in defence, but
Blundell's caught us in the final quarter,
and we had to settle for a thrilling 16-16
draw, an exhilarating game that saw Rosie
Dymond really come into her own.
We led the way against Clifton, playing
with high energy and dominating from the
outset. It was a superb team
performance that saw us win 29-19 -
Gussy Hydleman was superb. Colyton
followed and despite a slight mix of
personnel we pulled through once more to
win 25-23 - a truly exhilarating game.
Our final match was against Taunton
School, which we knew would be our
biggest and toughest game, and we were
very keen to win against our local rivals.
In an incredibly exciting game, we ran out
eventual 16-14 winners, despite being two
goals behind for much of the game. It
was only in the tense final quarter that we
managed to pull away into the lead - a
fantastic win and a perfect end to a
brilliant season. I wish the girls every
success next year.
Slick passing by Issy Germain
during the 1st VII's 20-20
draw against Queen's
Netball
1st VII
by Issy Germain
Aluredian 71