This recent Wednesday saw the Netball Blues suffer an agonising home defeat at the hands of relegation rivals Loughborough. An end-to-end, scrappy contest ended in the away side prevailing 48-47, in a must-win fixture for Cambridge.

Following a tricky first term, the Blues came into this game off the back of an away defeat in Oxford, knowing a win here was needed to significantly boost their survival chances. With Loughborough having the first centre pass, the opening quarter started fairly cagily, with both teams turning over the ball consistently and neither side showing any particular dominance. Cambridge opened their account through goal shooter Georgia Baker, who was particularly clinical in the game’s first half. However, regular interceptions by Loughborough and sloppy passing at times from the Blues meant the away side had the upper hand for most of the opening 15 minutes. A shift of momentum was achieved by two excellent interceptions from Blues co-captain Nat McEvoy, in the last three minutes of the first quarter to keep Loughborough at bay, leaving Cambridge 13-15 down at the first change of ends.

“A shift of momentum was achieved via two excellent interceptions by Nat McEvoy”

A change in positioning seemed to help sustain this momentum, with Nat McEvoy moving to goal defence, co-captain Izzy Howse shifting to wing defence, and Daisy Burnip moving into centre at the start of the second quarter. Consistent interplay between these three saw Cambridge move into a 24-23 lead towards the end of the second quarter. A glorious interception by Nat McEvoy led to the Blues extending their lead, before a fantastic pass from Annabelle Smith resulted in another goal for the home outfit, who finished the quarter 26-23 ahead.

Into the second half, Loughborough gradually shifted the momentum of the game in their favour. Despite some amazing individual moments from the light blues – including a standout second-phase ball from Annabelle Smith to Georgia Baker to score a two-pass goal, and an amazing turnover from Izzy Howse at 35-33 – the Blues were unable to sustain these glimmers of brilliance. The Loughborough goal shooter and goal attack were particularly clinical, posing a threat to the Blues’ hopes all game as the away side began to close the gap. Nevertheless, the penultimate quarter finished with just one goal separating the two sides.

Knowing the stakes at play, the Blues started the final quarter in positive fashion as Loughborough were instantly turned over, giving Cambridge a needed early goal. The end-to-end finish assured a tight scoreline, with little to differentiate the two sides in finishing ability, passing quality, or cohesion in possession. However, with the score tied at 47-47 with ten seconds to go, Loughborough scored a well-worked goal to clinch the win at the death and deal a devastating blow to the Blues’ season.

“A lack of sustained front-foot pressure throughout the game cost Cambridge dearly”

There were flashes of brilliance from all members of the Blues team, but a lack of sustained front-foot pressure throughout the game cost Cambridge dearly. While there are many positives to take from the game, which the Blues arguably could and should have won, Cambridge will know the loss here leaves them barely treading water in the relegation fight at the bottom of Midlands Tier 1.

The Blues now move on to a challenging home fixture against Worcester, followed by a visit from top-of-the-table Birmingham, as they hope to come back from the brink and keep their place in the division. Although a tricky task, there was nothing from this performance that indicates the Blues don’t have the ability or mettle to stay afloat.