Author: Ariella

Essex Open B were defeated 67-40 by New Cambell Green at Redbridge today.
Essex Open B 40 New Cambell Green 67
Essex fought hard against table topping New Campbell Green but eventually lost out 67-40. However Essex battled hard to keep in the game and can be pleased that they remained competitive throughout. In the first quarter of the match Essex looked as if they would be humiliated as New Campbell Green totally dominated the early stages. At one point in the first quarter Essex trailed 14-3 and a heavy defeat looked on the cards. However Essex rallied and towards the end of the quarter Louise Acons and Jaida Simpson scored 5 goals without response to ensure that Essex remained in touch when the first whistle went. At the end of the first quarter Essex were 16-10 in arrears. At the start of the second quarter Essex were very much in contention with Rosie Brabrook, Lola Stevens and Rebecca Mead competing well in the centre court. However there were two decisive spells in the quarter where Essex allowed Campbell Green to take the match away from them. Despite hard work from defenders Lauren Dawkins and Sarah Campbell they struggled to cope with the New Cambell long ball game. The long ball into the Essex circle created numerous opportunities for Cambell and when the half-time whistle went they held a commanding 34-20 lead.

Any hopes Essex had of salvaging anything from the game were dismissed in the first part of the third quarter as Cambell totally dominated. They scored 7 goals against a solitary response from Essex to go 45-21 in front. To their credit Essex worked hard in the last part of the quarter to try and keep in the match. When the whistle went to end the 3rd quarter Essex were 54-29 in arrears.
The last quarter was tightly contested as Essex battled to try and reduce the deficit. With shooters Acons and Simpson having their best quarter Essex managed 11 goals to 13 from New Cambell . At the final whistle
Essex had been decisively defeated but can feel pleased with the way they finished the game.
Dawkins, Campbell, Stevens, Brabrook, Mead, Acons, Simpson, Edwards.

Essex Open won 41-30 against local rivals Manor A today at Redbridge.
Essex Open A 41 Manor A 32
In a poor game of netball Essex Open A eventually emerged as comfortable winners. However the early stages of the game did not suggest that this would be the final outcome.
Both sides started really slowly with sloppy passing and careless errors meaning that goals were few and far between.

It was Manor who held the early initiative going 6-4 and 8-5 in front. However late goals from Sophia Sefton and Jaida Simpson saw Essex draw level at 8 all at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw a similar pattern with neither side able to retain possession for any length of time. Essex briefly threatened to take control when they went 15-12 in front. However they were never to put together a sustained spell of quality netball to take the game away from Manor. When the half time whistle went a late rally from Manor saw the scores remain level at 19 all.
In the second half Essex introduced Lola Stevens at wing defence and made some positional changes. At first there was very little impact but after a slow start to the quarter Essex took control. Manor were struggling to score against the Essex defensive combination of Ellie Stanley and Flo Edwards. They managed to restrict Manor to a mere 4 goals in the quarter. At the other end Simpson and Sefton shared 10 goals between them to give Essex a 6 goal cushion with a quarter to go as they led 29-23.
Essex needed a good start to the last quarter to ensure that they secured the points. Although they were not at their best Essex had enough of the possession in the centre court where Lola Stevens, Rebecca Wilks and Nicole Alves had too much for their opponents. A spell of 5 goals without reply midway through the quarter left Essex firmly in control. When the final whistle went Essex had secured a 41-30 victory.
Stanley, Edwards, Alves, Biss, R Wilks, Stevens, Sefton, Simpson

Essex lost 66-39 to title contenders Thoroughbreds in Norfolk today.
Thoroughbreds 66 Essex Open 39
Essex took on the twin task of high flying Thoroughbreds and storm Ciara as they travelled to Norfolk for their latest premiership Division 3 encounter.This was a very young, inexperienced Essex side facing second placed Thoroughbreds who look certain to gain promotion. In defence Essex gave a debut to Mia Citroen who was partnered by Lola Stevens, who was switched from her normal centre court position.

Against a very strong and physical Thoroughbreds team Essex started the game well. Jasmine Eastabrook, Rebecca Wilks and Rosie Brabrook moved the ball quickly around the court. They created chances for Louise Acons and Sophia Sefton to score early points for Essex. At the end of a very tight opening five minutes the scores stood level at 3 all.
However in terms of physical presence it was very difficult to manage Thoroughbred in both circles. Particularly in defence where Citroen and Stevens were up against tall physical shooters. Essex continued to battle hard but at the end of the first quarter they were 16- 8 in arrears.

Unfortunately the second quarter was a poor one for Essex and they were totally outplayed in every department. The defence found it difficult to stop the rampant Thoroughbred shooters whilst at the other end Essex found it hard to get the ball into the circle. Consequently by half time Thoroughbred held a 36-13 lead having dominated the second quarter.

At half-time Essex introduced Saffron Hancock into the attack and she ha immediate impact. For the first time Essex managed to keep on terms with Thoroughbred. In an impressive spell at the start of the second-half Essex managed to score 7 goals with Thoroughbred managing 2 in reply. The rest of the quarter saw both sides match each other girl for girl and indeed at the end of it each team had scored 15 each.

Unfortunately after all the hard work in the third quarter Essex started the last one particularly poorly. They allowed Thoroughbred to score 7 goals whilst only managing a consolation themselves. Once again however Essex refused to give up and came back into the game strongly. It was t their credit that for the rest of the quarter Essex managed to keep on times with Thoroughbred. When the final whistle went Essex had suffered another defeat by 66 goals to 39. However there was much to be pleased with in the performance. For a side so lacking in premiership experience to be competing with this side at the top of the division was a real credit to all concerned.

Citroen , Stevens, Eastabrook, Wilks, Brabrook, Acons , Hancock, Sefton.

Essex Open C defeated Foxes 47-28 at Redbridge today.
Essex Open C 47 Foxes 1 28
Essex Open remain top of division 3 after their comfortable victory over Foxes. From the outset Essex had control of the game and they were always in command. Essex dominated the centre court with Kayla Jordan, Kate Wilks and Josie Gibbons creating lots of chances for Lara May and the Mairead Sheehy to score early goals. Although the early exchanges were fairly even., Essex took an early 7-3 lead midway through the first quarter. With May and Sheehy continuing to find the net Essex held a comfortable 13-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. Essex started the second quarter well scoring 4 quick goals with only a solitary reply from Foxes. Foxes rallied with 3 quick goals Essex dominated the rest of the quarter to lead 25-12 at half-time.

Essex continued to dominate at the start of the second-half scoring 5 quick goals. While offensively Essex were playing well and retaining possession , in defence Charlotte Peters and Mia Citroen were making life very difficult for the Foxes shooters. The third quarter followed the pattern of the previous 2 with Essex maintaining control. Going into the last quarter the points were in the bag as Essex held an unassailable 37-18 lead.

In the last quarter Essex took their foot off the pedal after a strong start and allowed Foxes back into the game but by then the points had been secured.

Peters, Citroen, Jordan, K Wilks, Gibbons, Sheehy. May.

Other results
Essex Open D 45 Foxes 2 47
Essex Open E 20 Leyton D 39
Essex Open F -result not known
Essex Open G 22 Foxes D 60

Essex Open A fought back from 5 goals down with less than 3 minutes to go to earn a draw.
Essex Open A 45 Leyton A 45
In a dramatic finish to a thrilling game of netball Essex Open snatched a draw when defeat seemed to be inevitable. With less than 3 minutes to go in a quarter in which Leyton had been in control Essex trailed 45- 39 and there seemed to be no way back. Not only were they 6 goals down but Leyton had centre pass. However in the last few minutes Essex raised there game. Michelle Stewart was outstanding in defence ably assisted by Ellie Stanley who was returning from injury, whilst Nicole Alves, Rebecca Wilks and Sarah Biss took control of the centre court and Louise Acons and Sophia Sefton kept their composure in the circle. Essex overturned 3 Leyton centre passes and took advantage of their own to bring the score to 45-44 with seconds left on the clock. Another excellent Essex move found Sophia Sefton under the posts. She duly converted and the final whistle went and the great comeback had been completed.
From the outset this was an excellent game of netball with both sides evenly matched. Essex started well and and enjoyed some good possession to take an early 4-0 lead. Leyton immediately fought back with 3 goals in response.The rest of the quarter was end to end and when the whistle blew Essex were in front 15-12.
However at the start of the second quarter Essex threw away all the good work they had done earlier as careless mistakes allowed Leyton to score 5 goals without reply to take the lead. Essex then came back strongly and Alves, Biss and Wilks took control once again allowing Acons and Sefton to score 8 goals with Leyton managing only 2 in reply to go 23-19 in front.
With Essex threatening to take control, Leyton came back strongly again and at the half time interval had edged ahead 27-26.
The early stages of the second half saw both teams match each other goal for goal and with 5 minutes to go of the 3rd quarter the scores stood level at 32 all. Leyton finished the quarter strongly and took a useful 4 goal lead into the final quarter as they led 37-33.
Leyton scored with their centre pass at the start of the final quarter to go 5 goals in front. Essex were playing well and getting plenty of interceptions. They pulled back to trail 40-38 and a grandstand finished looked likely. However Leyton stormed back scoring 5 goals with Essex managing a solitary goal in response to hold a 45-39 lead and victory for Leyton had seemed inevitable. However the Essex fight back was underway and the end result was probably fair to both sides.
Stewart, Stanley, Alves, Biss, R Wilks, Acons, Sefton

Essex Open B 34 Marshall’s Purple 50
A depleted Essex team were convincingly defeated by a superior Marshall’s side. The early stages suggested that this would be a tight game as with only 5 minutes gone Essex led 5-3. However the warning signs were there that this was not going to be a good day for Essex as Marshall’s scored 9 goals without reply to take a 12-5 lead. Misplaced passes, basic errors and a lack of desire meant Essex had an uphill struggle.
The start of the second quarter saw the game evenly balanced as Jasmine Eastabrook, Rosie Brabrook and Rebecca Mead got lots of possession for Louise Acons and Jaida Simpson to turn into goals. Halfway through the quarter both sides had added 7 goals each to their respective totals. Once again however Essex allowed the game to slip away from them and in the remaining part of the quarter Marshall’s managed 7 goals with Essex managing only 2.
At half time Marshall’s held a 10 goal advantage as they led 26-16 and to all intents and purposes the game was over for Essex.
The third quarter was tightly contested with both sides matching each other goal for goal. For Essex Naomi Allen came into the side and Essex had a much better shape to their game. Unfortunately Essex could never string together a number of goals which was needed if they were to get back into the match. With a quarter to go Essex trailed 40-28.
The last quarter saw both sides struggling to get their game together. Essex started really slowly allowing Marshall’s to score 5 goals with Essex managing just a solitary reply. With both sides struggling to score the last quarter fizzled out and Marshall’s claimed the points in a 54-30 victory.
Campbell, Stevens, N Allen, Eastabrook, Brabrook, Mead, Acons, Simpson

Other results
Essex C team defeated Island 1 40-26 to remain top of Division 3. Essex D lost 48-31 to Cumberland 1. The E team remain in a strong position after beating Marshalls Black 51-24. Essex Open F lost 38-24 to Cumberland 3, whilst the G suffered a 75-22 defeat at the hands of Cumberland 4.

In their latest round of fixtures Essex Open list both matches at Redbridge Sports Centre.
It was another difficult morning at Redbridge on Saturday in the latest round of regional league matches. In the first game Essex put up an excellent display against Academy going down 28-17. However in the second game it was a different story as Essex were overpowered by table topping Telstars. They were never in the game as Telstars swept to a 36-9 victory.