Round 8 marked the beginning of the second half of the 2026 campaign, with Loughborough Lightning remaining unbeaten. Both London Pulse and AO Manchester Thunder continue to build strong momentum in pursuit of the major final spots, while Nottingham Forest ended their four-game losing streak to establish themselves as serious contenders.
Outside of the top four, the competition remains equally competitive, with London Mavericks and LexisNexis Dragons closely matched in the mid-table battle, separated by only one point. Meanwhile, NIC Leeds Rhinos and Birmingham Panthers continue their development, aiming to build form and close the gap as the season progresses.
Round Eight Results:
Nottingham Forest Netball 70-54 Birmingham Panthers
To start round eight, Nottingham Forest broke their four-game losing streak, securing a commanding 16-goal victory and 4th in the league, putting them five points ahead of London Mavericks in the play-off position. Forests’ attacking unit improved their clinical conversion rate as South Africa SPAR Protea and Player of the Match, Rolene Streutker, shot at 100% with 43 one-point shots as well as 9 Amex Super Shots. Streutker was commanding in the shooting circle, partnering with Brie Grierson, who contributed 44 feeds at wing attack. While the South African impressed for the visitors, Panthers’ NXT Gen graduate Sophie Egbaran had 20 goal contributions in her second start for Panthers, but the hosts struggled to make defensive gains with 12 unforced errors impacting their game. At the other end of the court, Jayda Pechova was equally as impactful for Chelsea Pitman’s side as she made 6 deflections (out of 22 for the whole side), 4 rebounds (out of 8) and made 7 gains out of Forest’s 15.
Manchester Thunder 67-55 LexisNexis Dragons
Manchester Thunder continued their strong form as they overturned a halftime deficit to produce a composed win over LexisNexis Dragons to remain undefeated at home. It was a game of two halves as Dragons led by one at the break, but Thunder’s experience and structure through the midcourt allowed them to control transitions and limit the Dragons’ attacking rhythm. Goal Defence, Nicola Smith (Player of the Match), was instrumental in the experienced side’s win with 6 deflections (out of Thunder’s 19) and 7 gains against Dragons’ Georgia Rowe, challenging the prolific shooter who converted 45 goals, at 96%, with 4 rebounds.
Loughborough Lightning 73-56 London Mavericks
Loughborough Lightning delivered another dominant full-court performance, combining high shooting accuracy with effective defensive efforts and circle feeds. London Mavericks (finishing at 81% shooting accuracy) struggled to contain Lightning’s pace and physicality, particularly against in-form, Samantha Wallace-Joseph who was able to capitalise on her side’s turnovers, scoring 37 goals with just one miss all game. Lightning’s young England Rose Celena Appleby-Prince, stepped into goal keeper to replace Alice Harvey and made an impact with 7 deflections- contributing to Lightning’s 18- and made 3 out of the 16 gains the hosts made.
London Pulse 65-44 Leeds Rhinos Netball
London Pulse rounded off the round with a commanding 21-goal win as their defence end put the pressure on early, forcing turnovers and converting them efficiently. Alicia Scholes proved to be Pulse’s playmaker, putting in 42 feeds (out of 77), whilst also receiving 19 centre passes linking up effectively with Liv Tchine, who scored 19 goals and 2 Amex Super Shots in her first game back from injury. Leeds Rhinos made a strong start- levelling the scores at 9-9 before the Super Shot time- however saw momentum swing with the hosts after the first quarter; Lauren Palmer’s side led in rebounds (8 to 6) and had fewer unforced errors than Pulse but despite the efforts of Simone Gordon- who shot 19 goals- and Harriet Jones (15 goals) the visitors 14 missed shots proved to be decisive in their defeat.
What’s Next:
Round 9 Fixtures:
Friday 24th April
- NIC Leeds Rhinos vs Nottingham Forest (19:00 Canon Medical Arena)
Saturday 25th April
- London Mavericks vs AO Manchester Thunder (16:00 Brighton Centre)
- Birmingham Panthers vs London Pulse (18:00 Worcester Arena)
Sunday 26th April
- LexisNexis Dragons vs Loughborough Lightning (16:30 Utilita Arena)
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