Numerous College and University Netball devotees turned up on this cold Wednesday to watch the University of York 3rds take on the newly established York Barbarians; a game which had been highly anticipated in recent weeks. The York Barbarians were captained by York Sport College Representative, Charlotte Winter and consisted of the best college players plus a few of University Sport starlets such as Anna Yeomans and Frankie Hall. The game did not disappoint, and although the Barbarians put up a convincing fight, most notably in the first quarter, the University of York 3rds team were victorious.
The first quarter started slowly in terms of goals, with play almost frantic at times, but with three outstanding interceptions from Abi Barber in the first five minutes, York showed their dominance. However, the Barbarians had finally overcome this superb defensive work with Charlotte Winter scoring two remarkable shots from the edge of the circle. This spurred the York team into action, and once Alia Khalil had eased into the game, she too was scoring some outstanding goals. The score at the start of the second quarter was 7-4 to York and they were clearly in fear of a Barbarian comeback. The Second Quarter began equally, with a shot being scored at each end within the first few minutes. The Barbarians looked certain to make a comeback and at one point there were just two goals separating the two teams. Most notably, incessant interceptions from Frankie Hall and Catherine O’ Mahoney kept the Barbarians in the game. However, by the end of the quarter, York managed to break away through consistent shooting by Alia Khalil and Eliza Ackland, and the quarter finished 14-8.
After calls from Charlotte Winter for the Barbarians to ‘keep it strong’, they did just that. Bringing Hannah Harvey onto WA proved effective for the Barbarians, as she fed consistent balls into the Goal Shooter who rarely missed a shot. Once again, the Barbarians looked to make a comeback at 18-14 but York’s Rachel Bunce put in a bold performance; using her height to win rebounds from the Barbarian shooters, and so York remained comfortably in the lead by the final quarter. The Barbarians went into the last quarter at a disadvantage suffering two injuries in the previous quarter. Despite this, they continued their unrelenting spirit and continued to pursue York. However, the skill of York’s centre Elissa Bryan ensured that York stayed in the lead. Bryan, who had met tough opposition in the form of Anna Yeomans, showed her skill by feeding the York shooters with reliable balls and at times overturning a Barbarian surge. The game ended 24-18 and the Barbarians had clearly shown they were a force to be reckoned with.
As York’s Captain Paisley Ross was injured, Elissa Bryan stepped in; they both thanked the Barbarians for their ‘time and effort’. She also mentioned that the game had highlighted areas in which York was to work on in order to ‘end the season on a high’. The Barbarians’ Captain, Charlotte Winter, commented that although it was their ‘first game together as a team’, she was ‘very impressed’ with her team’s performance. There is clearly great potential for the creation of a strong Barbarian and I’m sure that under the leadership of Charlotte Winter, this team can only get better.
University of York 3rds Player of the game: Elissa Bryan
York Barbarians Player of the game: Catherine O ’Mahoney