Thistles NWC 2023 Squad named

Scottish Thistles Head Coach Tamsin Greenway has named the squad that will be flying to Cape Town.
The 12-player squad features a mixture of experience and youth, with 320 caps shared amongst the group.

Claire Maxwell (Captain)
Emily Nicholl (Vice-Captain)

Emma Barrie
Bethan Goodwin
Niamh McCall
Cerys Cairns
Emma Love
Iona Christian
Hannah Leighton
Hannah Grant
Cerys FInn
Rachel Conway

Captain Claire Maxwell has been named in her third World Cup squad and is set to becomeScotland’s most capped player when she takes to court in Cape Town.
“I am really excited to participate in my third World Cup. I’ve learnt a lot from my previous experiences in major competition and know we need to push ourselves in every aspect over the next6 weeks to ensure we are ready to perform when it matters.”

“I have changed a lot as a player, teammate and person since my first World Cup and I’m ready toembrace the challenge and use all my previous learnings to get the best out of myself and the team inSouth Africa.”

For seven players – Cerys Cairns, Iona Christian, Rachel Conway, Cerys Finn, Hannah Grant,Hannah Leighton and Emma Love – this will be their first World Cup.

Tamsin Greenway, Scottish Thistles Head Coach, commented:
“The biggest part of selecting the 12 is looking at the whole picture, who fits in tactically, whocovers who, what are the what if’s, what do they bring to the culture? It’s so much more than justwho plays netball well, the reality is this was the most competitive selection we’ve had since I’vebeen in post which means behind the scenes the work we are doing is paying off.”

“It’s an exciting squad, it’s a group of players that fit the style we want to play both in attack anddefence. It’s relatively young, but it’s a talented group that are always wanting to learn and achievemore.”

The Scottish Thistles, led by Tamsin Greenway and Sara Francis-Bayman, will begin their WorldCup campaign against Malawi Queens on Friday 28 July (20:00 local time, Cape Town).

“It feels like a long time coming! So much has happened so far this season, so it feels good tofinally have the squad in place so we can begin working on our plans for the summer.”

The second clash in Pool B, will see Scottish Thistles face the Caribbean style and flair of Barbados(16:00), who they beat 72-28 at last years Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. The final match is a Home Nations clash with the Vitality Roses on Sunday 30 July (16:00).

“The tournament is tough, it’s long and tactically and varied, all I want from the squad is noregrets this time around. We learnt a lot about ourselves at CWG, in particular what unsettles us.If we can improve in key areas, then I’ll be happy.”

Their next fixtures in the competition will be determined by their results in the opening stage. The Final will take place on Sunday 6 August.