December 19th 2012
The fastest, most exciting, high octane and intense form of Netball is back in the New Year as the eight Superleague franchises head to the Wright Robinson in Manchester to take part in The Cathedral City Lighter Fast Net Grand Prix. The event will take place on the 4th and 5th of January 2013 and the Celtic Dragons are training hard over the Christmas period to try and better their 2012 fourth place finish.
The tournament will see the eight teams split into two groups, each playing in a round robin followed by a play-off game, semi-finals and Grand Final. The Dragons will be using the tournament as a run out for some of their new squad members, who were announced as part of the team earlier this month.
One of those new recruits is 29 year old Lorraine Betsy. Lorraine joins the Dragons squad from Surrey Storm and Premier League One club, The Downs. Based in Surrey, the 6ft 1” defender commutes to training with the Dragons in Cardiff twice a week, in addition to her full time job as a teacher.
Lorraine said ‘I’m so excited to be a part of the Dragon’s franchise and I’m really looking forward to the Fast Net tournament. It’s going to be good for us to have a test against the other franchises ahead of the Superleague . We’re training hard so hopefully we’ll get the result we want.’
The Fast Net tournament is very popular among netball followers. It is a more exciting version of the game with its shortened quarters; six minutes each with a two minute interval. The teams also have the ability to call one power play during a quarter of their choice, with any goals scored during this time receiving double points. Substitutions are allowed during play, and goals can be scored from outside the shooting circle for two points which allows the shooters to really show off their skills.
Tickets for the event can be bought here: http://www.ticketline.co.uk/the-cathedral-city-fastnet-grand-prix#tour
The 2013 Celtic Dragons Fast Net squad: Suzy Drane, Sara Hale, Nichola James, Nia Jones , Cathy Bastian, Kyra Jones, Stephanie Williams, Lorraine Betsy, Jamilla Abbott, Chelsea Lewis, Cara Moseley, Emma Thomas, Sioned Hiscocks, Bethan Dyke