| Event | 2012 Netball Superleague season | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Thunder win their first title on their grand final debut. Surrey Storm make their second successive grand final appearance. | |||||||
| Date | 20 May 2012 | ||||||
| Venue | SportHouse, Dagenham | ||||||
| Player of the Match | Eleanor Cardwell (Manchester Thunder) [1] | ||||||
The 2012 Netball Superleague Grand Final featured Northern Thunder and Surrey Storm. It was the first grand final not to feature either Team Bath or Mavericks. Northern Thunder won their first Superleague title. [2] [3] [4]
| 20 May 2012 | Northern Thunder | 57–55 | Surrey Storm | SportHouse, Dagenham [2] [3] [4] Umpires: Gary Burgess and Louise Travis | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 13–14, 28–25, 42–40, 57–55 | ||||||
Janelle Lawson  33/39 (85%)Karen Greig 24/28 (86%) | Rachel Dunn 35/41 (85%) Pamela Cookey 20/23 (87%) | |||||
| Head Coach: Tracey Neville Squad: [5] GA/GS Eleanor Cardwell | Head Coach: Tamsin Greenway Squad: [6] C/WD/WA Adele Modeste |
The Netball Superleague is a top level netball league featuring teams from the United Kingdom. The league is organised by England Netball but features teams based in England, Wales and Scotland. The league was commenced playing at the 2005–06 season, replacing the Super Cup as the elite netball competition in England. Since 2016 the league has been sponsored by VitalityHealth and, as a result, it is also known as the Vitality Netball Superleague.
Surrey Storm is an English netball team based at the University of Surrey. Their senior team plays in the Netball Superleague. Between 2001 and 2005 they played in the Super Cup as London Hurricanes. After forming a partnership with Brunel University London, they became the Brunel Hurricanes. In 2005–06 they were founder members of the new Netball Superleague. Before the 2009–10 Netball Superleague season, they ended their partnership with Brunel University, relocated to the University of Surrey and became Surrey Storm. As Surrey Storm they were Superleague champions in 2015 and 2016.
Janelle Lawson is an Australian netball player. In 2012 she was a member of the Northern Thunder team that won the Netball Superleague title. During the Commonwealth Bank Trophy era she played for Perth Orioles and AIS Canberra Darters. During the ANZ Championship era she played for Queensland Firebirds and West Coast Fever.
Tamsin Greenway is a former England netball international. She was a member of the England teams that won bronze medals at the 2010 Commonwealth Games and at the 2011 and 2015 Netball World Cups. Between 2006 and 2018 she played in eight Netball Superleague grand finals for three different teams – Team Bath, Surrey Storm and Wasps. During this time she won five Netball Superleague titles as a player and/or coach and a sixth as a director of netball. Greenway also works as a netball pundit for Sky Sports. In 2020 she was appointed head coach of the Scotland national netball team.
Team Bath is an English netball team based at the University of Bath. Their senior team plays in the Netball Superleague. In 2005–06 they were both founder members and the inaugural champions of the league. They were Superleague champions again in 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10 and 2013. The netball team is one of several sports teams based at the University of Bath that use the Team Bath brand name. Others include an association football team and a field hockey team.
Manchester Thunder are an English netball team based in Manchester. Their senior team plays in the Netball Superleague. In 2005–06, Thunder were founder members of the league. They were Superleague champions in 2012, 2014 and 2019. Between 2001 and 2012 they played as Northern Thunder and were originally based in Bury, Greater Manchester.
The 2015 Netball Superleague season saw Surrey Storm finish as champions for the first time after defeating Hertfordshire Mavericks in the grand final. Manchester Thunder finished top of the table following the regular season but they subsequently lost to Mavericks in the semi-finals. Thunder eventually finished third overall. Yorkshire Jets were the surprise team of the season, finishing third during the regular season and fourth overall. This was the first season in Superleague history that Team Bath did not qualify for the semi-finals.
The 2016 Surrey Storm season saw them retain the Netball Superleague title after defeating Manchester Thunder in the grand final. During the regular season they finish second behind Thunder.
Stacey Francis is an England netball international. She was a member of the England teams that won bronze medals at the 2010 Commonwealth Games and at the 2011 and 2015 Netball World Cups. At club level she has played for both Team Bath and Yorkshire Jets in the Netball Superleague, for Canterbury Tactix in the ANZ Championship and for West Coast Fever in Suncorp Super Netball. Between 2005–06 and 2013 she was a prominent member of the Team Bath squad as they won five Superleague titles. She played in the 2010 and 2013 grand finals and in both 2011 and 2013 she was named the Netball Superleague Player of the Season. In 2017 she was inducted into the University of Bath/Team Bath Hall of Fame for Sport.
The 2005–06 figleaves.com Netball Superleague season was the inaugural season of the new Netball Superleague which replaced the Super Cup as the top level netball competition in England. The inaugural champions were Team Bath, who defeated Galleria Mavericks in the grand final.
The 2011 FIAT Netball Superleague season saw Hertfordshire Mavericks finish as champions for the second time. In the grand final they defeated Surrey Storm. For the first time, the season was completed in a single calendar year, starting on 22 January and concluding on 9 June with the grand final. Fiat Group Automobiles became the Netball Superleague's new sponsor.
The 2011 Netball Superleague Grand Final featured Hertfordshire Mavericks and Surrey Storm. Mavericks would win their second title. This was Mavericks sixth successive grand final while Surrey Storm's were making their debut appearance. Between 2011 and 2016 Surrey Storm would play in five out of the six Netball Superleague grand finals. However in their first three they finished as runners up. In 2011 they lost 57–46 to Mavericks.
The 2012 FIAT Netball Superleague season saw Northern Thunder finish as champions for the first time. In the grand final they defeated Surrey Storm. 2012 saw the introduction of a new format, featuring three distinct phases, including a Showdown Weekend.
The 2013 Netball Superleague season saw Team Bath finish as champions for the fifth time. In the grand final they defeated Celtic Dragons. 2013 used a three phases format similar to 2012.
The 2014 Netball Superleague Grand Final featured Manchester Thunder and Surrey Storm. This was the second grand final featuring Thunder and Storm. The two teams previously met in the 2012 grand final which Thunder won by two points. After winning the regular season without losing a match, Storm, with a team featuring player/coach Tamsin Greenway and Rachel Dunn, started the final as favourites. At half-time they were leading 26–22 and after three quarters were still ahead at 38–36. However Thunder, coached by Tracey Neville and featuring Sara Bayman, remained a threat throughout the match. With the score at 48–48 and twenty five seconds on the clock, pressure from Jodie Gibson saw Storm lose possession. Thunder pounced on a loose ball and fed it to Helen Housby who subsequently netted a very late winner.
The 2016 Vitality Netball Superleague season saw Surrey Storm retain the title after defeating Manchester Thunder in the grand final. Thunder finished top of the table following the regular season. The league was sponsored by VitalityHealth.
The 2017 Vitality Netball Superleague season saw a new franchise, Wasps, win the title in their inaugural season. In the grand final they defeated regular season winners, Loughborough Lightning.
The 2016 Team Bath netball season saw Team Bath finish third overall in the 2016 Netball Superleague. In the third-place play-off they defeated Hertfordshire Mavericks 49–48 to finish the season as bronze medallists. During the regular season they finished fourth, level on points with Surrey Storm and Hertfordshire Mavericks in second and third place respectively. Manchester Thunder topped the table. Team Bath lost 53–46 at Manchester Thunder in the play-off semi-finals.
The 2017 Team Bath netball season saw Team Bath finish fourth overall in the 2017 Netball Superleague. Team Bath won seven games in a row to finish fourth in the regular season. Their qualification for the play-offs was only secured on the last day. In the semi-final they were beaten by Loughborough Lightning. They went on to finish fourth overall after defeat to Manchester Thunder in the 3rd/4th place play-off.
The 2019 Team Bath netball season saw Team Bath finish third in the 2019 Netball Superleague regular season and qualify for the play offs. In the semi-finals they lost to the eventual overall champions, Manchester Thunder. Team Bath subsequently defeated Loughborough Lightning in the third place play-off.
