A round-up of the action from the 2016 Potters House Netball UK tournament

Newham Recorder: Stratford Panthers at the Potters House netball event (pic: Cathia Stewart)Stratford Panthers at the Potters House netball event (pic: Cathia Stewart) (Image: Archant)

Stratford Panthers were unable to retain their Potters House Netball UK tournament title recently after finishing fourth at the Copper Box Arena.

Panthers had won the previous two editions of the competition, which this year grew to 11 teams, meaning it had to be moved from Chobham Academy to the former Olympic venue.

Teams from across London and the UK descended on the Olympic Park and the day started with an ‘Afrobeat’ session led by local trainer Ada Abolou.

After an initial round-robin stage, Panthers finished fourth having just been pipped by Waltham Forest Dashers in their clash.

Newham Recorder: Manchester Mustard Seeds at the Potters House netabll event (pic: Cathia Stewart)Manchester Mustard Seeds at the Potters House netabll event (pic: Cathia Stewart) (Image: Archant)

The final saw Manchester Mustard Seeds face Rotherhithe Allstars, which proved to be a fitting finale.

At the end of normal time, the sides were locked level at 2-2, meaning extra time was needed – but even then they could not be separated as they were tied at 3-3.

A ‘golden goal’ period followed, with Manchester shooting the winning score inside the first minute to take home the title.

Mustard Seeds will host next year’s edition as their reward, the first to take place outside of London.

Newham Recorder: Rotherhithe All Stars finished second at the Potters House netball event (pic: Cathia Stewart)Rotherhithe All Stars finished second at the Potters House netball event (pic: Cathia Stewart) (Image: Archant)

But despite seeing Panthers’ not retain their crown, tournament organiser and founder VJ Davidson was pleased with how the event went.

“It’s a bittersweet time for myself and the Stratford Panthers, as for the first time in three years we lost the title,” said Davidson.

“The team really galvanised over the summer months and we had

lots of fun with some memorable training moments.

Newham Recorder: Waltham Forest Dashers finished third at the Potters House netball event (pic: Cathia Stewart)Waltham Forest Dashers finished third at the Potters House netball event (pic: Cathia Stewart) (Image: Archant)

“It’s also been great welcoming many new people to the sport as we reached out to people in our local community and then seeing them go on to improve their play. The ethos behind the tournament, has always been to inspire females to get active, socialise and make better life choices with support from the local church, Potters House Stratford, helping to fulfil the legacy of London 2012.

“I want to say a huge thank you to all of our volunteers, supporters and donators – they were fantastic as staff at the Copper Box.

“All roads lead to Manchester in 2017 when we hope to bring the trophy back to Newham.”

“Looking ahead to next year, the aspect I’m most looking forward to is getting more sleep from March to the tournament day!

Supporters of this year’s event included Body Health Therapies, Jayne Williams Makeup, BIKO Face Painters and Waitrose

Prizes were donated by Sainsbury’s Stratford and Beckton, DeVere Venues’ Denham Grove, Your Hair & Beauty, Nando’s Stratford, The Body Shop Stratford, England Netball, City River Cruises and Can Caps founder Jessen Terumali.

Panthers continue to train throughout the year at Chobham Academy Sports Centre on Sundays at 10.30am and 6.30pm or Wednesdays at 7pm.

Anyone who might be interested in joining the club can get in touch with them by emailing phccstratford@gmail.com or alternatively find them on Twitter (@PottersE15).