The England U17s completed a clean sweep of victories during the Netball Europe Championship to retain their crown and lift the trophy at the weekend.
An exuberant squad flew into Belfast on Thursday as they prepared to take on Scotland, Wales and hosts Northern Ireland looking to secure a title which
First up was a tricky looking clash against Northern Ireland on Friday afternoon. The welcoming hosts were keen to a put on a show in front of a noisy home support.
The young Roses grew into the game after a steady start and began to pull clear off their opponents in the second quarter.
With only give goals conceded in Q2, the shooting duo of Olivia Tchine and Kira Rothwell were able to push England 30-12 clear at half-time.
Changes were made at the interval, with the bench being emptied and the whole squad making their Roses’ debut. A dominant second half saw a 61-19 victory secured.
Wales lie in wait on Saturday lunchtime and England knew they had to kick-on from their excellent start on the opening day.
Any tension was not visible as the Roses absolutely blew away the opposition in the opening quarter. A 23-6 lead inside fifteen minutes showing how frenetic the action was.
England refused to step of the gas and a 39-16 half-time advantage was gained. Once again changes were made throughout the second half and to their credit, Wales produced an excellent final quarter to close the gap to 68-36 at the final whistle.
A win on Sunday morning would complete the perfect weekend and despite the early start, the Roses were immediately into their stride.
It was a game where the defence was on top throughout, conceding just two goals in the third quarter as England turned a 34-12 half-time lead into a 78-22 success.
The U17 England Roses squad were;
Shelby Harris (South), Alice Harvey (Y&H), Maddie Munro-Hall* (East Mids), Jasmin Odeogberin (L&SE), Georgia Pexton (Y&H), Ellie Rattu (East), Annabel Roddy (West Mids), Kira Rothwell (L&SE), Sienna Rushton (East Mids), Ella Standring (North-West), Olivia Tchine (L&SE) Hannah Williams (North-West)
Netball Europe U17 Championship – Results
Northern Ireland 19-61 England
England 68-36 Wales
Scotland 22-78 England
England Netball would like to thank Netball Northern Ireland for their fantastic hospitality and would also like to extend our thanks to the players, coaches, officials, volunteers and fans who attended the Netball Europe Championship.
