Netball Super Cup: What is it all about?
If you are one of the thousands of school-age athletes who take part in netball every week, you will want to hear all about the new Netball Super League which kicks off with a brand new competition this weekend. The Netball Super Cup is a special one day tournament where eight teams battle it out to be crowned champions. It will act as a bit of a kick start to the Super League season which starts on Friday, 14 March. So who will be taking part? Read on to find out more...
How will the Super Cup work?
The Super Cup will be a stand alone competition, so the results won't have any impact on the League. The eight teams taking part are:London Mavericks, Manchester Thunder, Leeds Rhinos, Cardiff Dragons, Loughborough Lightning, London Pulse, plus two brand new teams, Nottingham Forest Netball and Birmingham Panthers. Each team will be placed into one of two groups for the first rounds and face each other in three shorter-length, seven-a-side matches. The top two teams from each group will go through to the semi-finals, where the winners of those will go into the final. These later matches will be 14 minutes long (rather than the usual 60 minutes for Super League games).
What will be different about this year's Super League?
Netball in the UK has always been popular - made even more so after the England team won the Commonwealth gold in 2018. This year, the league is set to become bigger and more competitive than ever. Many of the matches will be played in arenas around the UK, and the grand final will take place in the O2 arena in London. New rules will be introduced with the aim of making the game even more exciting to watch. For example, matches won't be able to end in a draw - the games will go to extra time if they are tied after the four 15-minute quarters and play will continue until a side has a two-point lead over the others. Teams will also be able to request 90-second tactical timeouts, much like in professional basketball. There will also be the introduction of the two-point "super shot", where goal shooters will be allowed to score two points from a special area on the edge of the shooting circle during the last five minutes of each quarter.
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