On Monday 6th October Monmouth faced Risca A in the Premier division of the South East Wales netball league, a team they took the win against last season but they ended up as a top 3 finisher.

The day before four of the Monmouth team had taken part in the Cardiff half marathon, so there were quite a few tired legs and unfortunately some injuries.

Injury setbacks aside, Monmouth began positively ensuring they settled into simple, steady passing between the centre court unit Emma King and Mandy Davies who had moved from defence to attack to cover injured Kali Jade Cross.

Accurate feeds into the shooters allowed Monmouth to convert off every centre. The first quarter ended evenly and it was still anyone's game.

Going into the second quarter, Monmouth continued to work hard to break down the Risca attack. The Monmouth defensive team worked well together putting pressure on the shooter, Becky Hoggins and Vanessa Ball picked up some great rebounds and interceptions which Monmouth were able to turn over.

Gradually, Monmouth's tired legs were beginning to take their toll on the speed of play, and errors were taken advantage of by Risca.

Throughout the second and third quarter, despite excellent efforts of Laura Griffiths to keep the Risca attacking unit at bay, Risca began to extend their lead.

The Monmouth shooters Nina Booker and Holly Hall who were playing against some of the best defence in SE Wales still worked incredibly hard to create space in the shooting circle and both pulled off some excellent shots from range.

As Risca began to run away with the scoreline, Monmouth were unable to stop the fluid passing and movement between the Risca shooters. The final score saw Monmouth loose 45-29. The player of the Match and player's player both went to Holly Hall for excellent movement and consistent shooting to keep Monmouth in the game. Captain King was very pleased with her team's performance, all things considered, and felt the score does not give the game justice.

Next Monmouth will face Pontypool on the 20th October at Cwmbran Stadium. Supporters always welcome.