Lightning strike to deny Pulse another Super Cup

Loughborough Lightning toppled last season’s dominant force London Pulse 18-17 in the Netball Super Cup final as the new campaign got off to a thrilling start.

Deposed by Pulse as Netball Super League (NSL) champions in the Grand Final last July, Lightning flipped the tables on their rivals who began a dominant 2025 by winning this event 12 months ago.

These two will be the teams to beat when the new league campaign begins on 27 February, with Lightning the team starting on a huge high.

Head coach Vic Burgess said: “It’s been a really good day from us. We came into this knowing it’s a little bit different. It can be tough and it can be quick, and Pulse nearly caught us.

“I’m really proud of the girls. They were up for it. They were chilled but with a focus on doing well for each other. The girls love winning and I love winning.”

The one-day Super Cup features all eight NSL teams, split into two groups for round-robin matches before the semi-finals and final stage.

The 14-minute matches are far removed from the usual 60-minute games but it was a strong form guide last year when Pulse took the spoils and went on to triumph in the NSL for the first time.

Lightning co-captain Nat Panagarry said there had been a sense of “feeling sorry for yourself” after last year’s Grand Final defeat, fuelling Saturday’s win.

Leeds Rhinos and Cardiff-based Dragons occupied the bottom two spots in the NSL last season but both reached the semi-finals here and looked revitalised.

Group 1: Loughborough Lightning 23-21 Nottingham Forest, Dragons 18-6 Birmingham Panthers, Forest 14-12 Panthers, Lightning 18-15 Dragons, Dragons 15-9 Forest, Lightning 19-18 Panthers

Group 2: Leeds Rhinos 16-9 Manchester Thunder, London Pulse 15-8 London Mavericks, London Pulse 21-13 Manchester Thunder, Mavericks 13-13 Rhinos, Mavericks 19-8 Thunder, Pulse 13-12 Rhinos

Semi-finals: Lightning 13-9 Rhinos, Pulse 18-16 Dragons

International commitments over the winter months have interrupted pre-season preparations and that was a common message from coaches as some teams coped better than others on the big stage.

In front of packed stands at one of the UK’s largest indoor arenas, Birmingham Panthers and Manchester Thunder both lost three from three.

“It’s been a tough day,” said Thunder coach Karen Greig, whose side lost their three games heavily to make an early exit.

Thunder will face NSL champions Pulse in the league’s opening match, with more than 5,000 tickets sold for that Copper Box encounter.

Greig has brought England goal shooter El Cardwell back to England after a successful stint in Australia while Thunder also have fellow Roses star Nat Metcalf back after she missed last season when pregnant and looking after baby son Miller.

But it was to no avail at the Super Cup.

“Today was about us understanding where we were actually at,” Greig said.

“The performances and the connections on the court definitely highlighted that.

“The quality that we’ve got in our group is undeniable and it’s about us now making sure we get everyone on the same page and connected.”

There was no such problem for Lightning while Pulse took consolation from being a whisker away from another major title.