Greig shows the way for Oldham

Karen Greig

NETBALL:

OLDHAM won the Roses clash with a superb 68-46 defeat of Leeds Carnegie and in the process climbed above the West Yorkshire outfit in the Netball Premier League.

The showdown attracted a larger than usual crowd, and they were treated to some free-flowing netball.

Oldham quickly stamped their authority on the game, with goal shooter Karen Greig in devastating form. She notched 13 goals from 17 shots in the first quarter.

She was ably assisted by young goal attack Kathryn Turner, who had a 100-per-cent record (five from five) as Oldham closed out the quarter with a healthy 18-11 lead.

Oldham welcomed back wing attack Rachel Henry from injury, and her experience showed by cutting through the Leeds defence and finding the shooters with ease.

She injected much-needed dynamism into the Oldham attack, and she worked well with centre Laura Malcolm, who produced one of her best displays so far this season.

The home side cranked up the pressure and increased their lead at the half-time break to 35-21.

Henry had a good run-out, but was limited to playing half a game in her rehabilitation, so up stepped Maria McAndrew for the second half.

Leeds upped their game in the third quarter and forced Oldham into making mistakes.

The home side seemed to lose their flow, but the defence of Kerry Almond and Emma Dovey came to the fore, turning over the ball, to help Oldham take the quarter by two goals.

Leading 51-35 at the start of the final quarter, Oldham were back to the form of the first half.

Almond and Dovey kept out the Leeds attack, while the ball picked out the shooters with ease.

Greig put the game out of reach with a faultless quarter, scoring 14 from 14 attempts.

Coach Mike Greenwood said: “It’s always a good feeling to beat our local rivals, and we put in a great performance to achieve victory.”

Oldham take a break from the Premier League this weekend due to the World Netball Series, but host Essex side Academy at Hathershaw in two weeks’ time.




Power-play too much for visitors



HIGH-FLYING Oldham crashed 51-32 at nearest rivals Grangetown in the Northern League.



The visitors made a poor start, missing the first three shots to go 8-1 down.

However, a strong defence saw Oldham turn the ball over, and they ended the first quarter 10-7 adrift.

Oldham narrowed the gap to 19-17 at the half-way stage, but the Middlesbrough outfit, who had a greater physical presence, then took command to win comfortably.