Monday 3 June 2019 14:51, UK
Gail Parata has announced the Scottish Thistles squad for July's Netball World Cup with 11 out of the 12 players coming from the Vitality Netball Superleague franchise Strathclyde Sirens.
Claire Maxwell, who is set to reach her 100th senior international cap during the opening World Cup stage, will lead the outfit with Emma Barrie set to earn her first senior international cap at the age of just 17.
Lauren Tait of Glasgow Saltires Netball Club, is the only member of the squad to ply her trade away from Sirens.
"We are currently working extremely hard in training to make sure we hit the World Cup at our absolute best," said Maxwell, who also represented Scotland at the last edition of the competition in 2015.
"For many of the team this is their first World Cup and it is testament to their hard work that they have made the team that will compete at our sport's pinnacle event.
"Over the next six weeks we will be looking to cement our combinations and mimic the competition format of the World Cup to ensure we have done everything we can in preparation."
Scotland qualified ahead of home nation rivals Northern Ireland at their Regional Qualifier event last year and are housed in Group D of the Preliminaries Stage One.
The outfit will meet Samoa on the opening day of the competition before duelling with hosts England and then Uganda.
"Scotland's rise on the world stage has been significant, and we cannot wait to go out and prove ourselves against the best of the best," said Claire Nelson, CEO of Netball Scotland.
"Scotland intends to not only deliver our best ever results on the court through our Scottish Thistles, but to also deliver a lasting legacy off the court that strengthens our sport for the future."
Watch every match of the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup live on Sky Sports. Coverage starts on Friday, July 12 plus keep up to date with all of the latest competition news, results and enjoy in-depth features at SkySports.com/netball
