Loughborough Lightning beat London Pulse 18-17 in the final of the Netball Super Cup on Saturday.
London Pulse were looking to defend their title after winning the inaugural event last year but Loughborough Lightning pipped them in a close final and put down a marker for the season ahead.
The one-day standalone tournament saw all eight Netball Super League teams in action ahead of the start of the regular season.
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The eight teams were drawn into two pools for the group stages, during which each team played three shorter length, seven-a-side games.
The two top teams from the two groups progressed to the semi-finals. Lightning beat NIC Leeds Rhinos 13-9 in the first semi-final, while Pulse defeated LexisNexis Dragons 18-16.
In the final the strength of Lightning's circle defence forced Pulse to shoot from long range. This pressure allowed Lightning to get a four-goal lead in the first half but Pulse hit back to trail by two at half-time.
With the score 11-9, Player of the Final Sammy Wallace Joseph unleashed her long-range shooting ability, bagging Amex Super Shots at will to stretch Lightning's advantage.
The goal shooter's 80 per cent Amex Super Shot accuracy proved the difference in a nail-biting finish.
Pulse went on a last-minute run of goals, and momentum swung in their favour, but the buzzer blocked their chance to repeat last year's victory, and they fell one short.
The one-goal victory in the final secured the Soft & Gentle Netball Super Cup for Lightning's trophy cabinet.
Full results
- Loughborough Lightning 23-21 Nottingham Forest
- AO Manchester Thunder 9-16 NIC Leeds Rhinos
- London Pulse 15-8 London Mavericks
- Birmingham Panthers 6-18 LexisNexis Dragons
- London Pulse 21-13 AO Manchester Thunder
- Nottingham Forest 14-12 Birmingham Panthers
- LexisNexis Dragons 15-18 Loughborough Lightning
- London Mavericks 13-13 NIC Leeds Rhinos
- Nottingham Forest 9-16 LexisNexis Dragons
- AO Manchester Thunder 8-19 London Mavericks
- NIC Leeds Rhinos 12-13 London Pulse
- Birmingham Panthers 18-21 Loughborough Lightning
- Semi-final 1: Loughborough Lightning 13-9 NIC Leeds Rhinos
- Semi-final 2: LexisNexis Dragons 16-18 London Pulse
- Final: London Pulse 17-18 Loughborough Lightning
(c) Sky Sports 2026: Netball Super Cup: Loughborough Lightning beat London Pulse by one goal in final to claim title and put down marker for new season
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