Manchester Spurs Win Elite Netball League Title with 72-47 Final Victory over Hummingbirds

Manchester Spurs are champions of the Netball Jamaica Red Stripe Flavors Elite Netball League after defeating Kingston Hummingbirds 72-47 in Sunday's final at the National Indoor Centre.

The title clash delivered the showdown supporters had anticipated all season. Twelve months earlier, the Spurs entered the championship match unbeaten and heavily favoured, only to fall 52-50. They opened this campaign with a 59-37 statement win, yet only the final result would settle the account.

Both sides began sharply, with the Spurs edging the first quarter 17-14. Concerned by the tight margin, they raised the intensity in the second period, scoring 20 goals while allowing 10 to reach halftime ahead 37-24. That surge gave them a platform to control the match.

A further 19 goals in the third quarter stretched the lead to 56-35 and put the trophy within reach. The Spurs managed 16 goals in the fourth quarter—their lowest period return—but still closed out a 25-goal victory.

The Spurs' leading shooter finished with 30 goals from 38 attempts, backed by 22 from Shanice Beckford. Tracy and Francis led the Hummingbirds with 39 from 40.

A representative of the Spurs said the side refused to dwell on last year's loss: "I would say that we were wrong last season. It's just that one team had to win, and we end up on the losing side having not lost in the preliminary round. It wasn't about focusing on what happened last because what's done last year was done. It's about ensuring that we came out this year and make every effort to win the championships. And we did that and we are happy champions tonight."

On the Hummingbirds side, a team official said key absences hurt their title bid: "We lost all of our players going into the finals for personal reasons. Two of our most important players, I might add. I really thought the ladies did come out, though, and they did their best. We started off well; they followed the instructions for the first two quarters. Somewhere along the line in the third quarter we started to lose it. We started to rush it. We started to force the balls to our shooter. And I think from there we just started to go down."

In the third-place playoff, Sentan Orchids edged St. Catherine Racers 74-71. Natalie Campbell scored 44 goals for the Orchids and Christina Storage added 28, while Simone Gordon hit 57 for the Racers.