Team Bath announce exciting long squad for 2015
An array of exciting and talented players feature in Team Bath’s 20-strong long squad for the 2015 Netball Superleague season.
The final squad of 15 is expected to be announced later this year ready for the new Superleague season, which gets underway at the end of January.
Team Bath are the most successful team in the history of the Superleague, having won five of the nine campaigns contested to date.
The long squad for 2015 features 11 players returning from Team Bath’s 2014 campaign, including the exciting quintet of England internationals Rosie Allison, Stacey Francis, Mia Ritchie, Yas Parsons and Sam Cook.
Talented defender Cook, who impressed massively with her athleticism and strength when Team Bath last won the Superleague title in 2013. She featured in last year’s long squad but missed the season through injury.
And goal attack/wing attack Rachel Shaw could also be poised to feature for Team Bath for the first time after transferring south from Yorkshire a year ago, just after the World Youth Championships, but missing the 2014 campaign through injury.
There’s also a return to the long squad for Asha Francis. The former Team Bath captain missed last season for the birth of her first child, Elise Caitlin Francis.
New names in the long squad include Wales international Kyra Jones and Scotland international Claire Brownie, who both featured for their respective nations at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. Danielle McFarlane, formerly with Hertfordshire Mavericks and a former England age group player also features.
And talented young players Shaunagh Craig, Lauren Dent and Jazz Scott, who all featured in last season’s squad, return for 2015, while youngsters Ellie Gibbons and Ashleigh Jay are named in the long squad for the first time.
Eleven players are University of Bath students or graduates.
A fresh and exciting squad
Jess Thirlby, Team Bath’s head coach, said: “It’s an exciting long squad and it feels quite fresh.
“There’s a really good balance. We’ve still got 11 players returning from last year, which means there’s plenty of continuity, but there are also a lot of new faces – we attracted players to the trials from a lot further afield this year.
“There’s still a fair bit of competition throughout all of the units, especially in centre court, so it will be interesting to see how that pans out over the next few weeks.”
Team Bath get their 2015 Superleague campaign underway with trips to Team Northumbria and Manchester Thunder, followed by a mouth-watering televised home game against last season’s runners-up Surrey Storm on Monday 9 February.
Buy tickets!
A full list of fixtures is available from the Team Bath website.
Tickets for Team Bath’s home games are available to buy now via Ticketline and Sky Tickets.
Carter Jonas are Team Bath Netball’s property partner. Surridge are the official kit supplier and Skins provide the team with compression wear.
Team Bath’s 2015 long squad
Rosie Allison, Shaunagh Craig, Asha Francis, Lauren Dent, Rach Shaw, Ellie Gibbons, Mia Ritchie, Yas Parsons, Amanda Trounce, Jazz Scott, Danielle McFarlane, Scarlett Williams, Kyra Jones, Nicole Humphrys, Claire Brownie, Stacey Francis, Sam Cook, Jenna Murie, Ashleigh Jay, Sarah Penny.
For further information please contact the Team Bath press office at Matchtight Limited on 01225 383518 or press@matchtight.co.uk
