Roma may have problems but they are not ready to fall to the wayside in Cayman Islands netball.
Roma A crushed Unity B 68-6 at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex netball courts. Last Thursday’s encounter was part of the 2012 Cayman Islands Netball Association open league.
The two-time defending champions were dominant after struggling to field a full squad at the start of the season. Defensively, the likes of Carrie Barnett (Goal Defence) and Paula Hughes (Wing Defence) shut down the opposition. Barnett states the win is just a taste of what her side can do.
“The game went OK, Roma can do much better,” Barnett said. “Without any competition there’s not the same vibes to play. We took the game easy, drove through the game easy and played relaxed.
“It doesn’t look good for us in (terms of) numbers but in the weeks to come, we’ll be on top. No one wants to see us win again and no matter how many players go home, we still can do it. We’re focusing on a third championship and after that we’ll resign (just kidding).”
The statistics show the game was never in doubt. Roma opened up a 12-0 first quarter advantage before coasting to victory with 21-1, 19-3 and 16-2 scores in the remaining three quarters. The offence was flawless behind star shooters Nicola Pringle (Goal Attack) and Kay Copeland (Goal Shooter), who scored about 51 points on the night. The rest of Roma’s line-up saw Stacy-Ann Dehaney (Wing Attack), Sherina Christie (Centre) and Kadian Riley (Goal Keeper).
There were not many positives for winless Unity, who play next on 17 March. However Diana Codner (GA) showed flashes of brilliance with some tough scores under pressure. Thursday’s roster saw Nathine Ebanks (GS), Tamara Lahoo (WA), Scimone Williams (C), Analee Godfrey (WD), Natalee Simpson (GD), Shawna Colore (GK) and Chelsea Avanrangea and Marcia Smith as subs.
Unity head coach David Wilson states the result was a blowout because of a lack of execution.
“To be honest, it was kind of expected,” Wilson said. “The B team is a very weak team with less accomplished players. Roma (A) is one of, if not the, strongest netball teams in Cayman, compared to, say, All Stars (A).
“I knew we’d lose but I wanted to limit the damage. The emphasis was on containment but clearly we did not do a good job with that. Credit to Roma though, they have good players. We’re not up to their level, not yet. However our A team will fare much better.”
For Roma, the victory propels them to 2-1 and within striking distance of frontrunners All Stars A and Rising Stars A. Roma’s other results were a 44-19 victory over their B team before losing to AS B 35-37 with only five players suiting up for the contest. The yellow and white squad play again on 10 March.
Barnett states their lone loss so far was a fluke.
“We have two wins and the one loss to All Stars B. In that loss, the umpiring on one end was not good. However, it was a fair game. There won’t be no more losses.”
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