“I’m super excited and honoured to be joining the Thunder family to help them defend their title in 2020."
Sunday 1 September 2019 22:41, UK
Ashleigh Neal has joined the Vitality Netball Superleague defending champions, Manchester Thunder.
The 30-year-old Australian, who covers WA, C and GA, signs from London Pulse and has plenty of Superleague experience under her belt.
Her time with Pulse last season added to prior stints at Mavericks and Team Northumbria.
Thunder's director of netball Karen Greig has shared her excitement about the arrival of the versatile and experienced player.
"I have admired Ashleigh's game over the last few seasons so I'm delighted we have secured her signing here at Thunder," said Greig on the franchise's official website.
"She is a very smart player both on and off the ball and is capable of cutting up defences with pin-point passes. There are few players around that can offer both WA and GA positions solidly so she will be a great fit for us with her versatility across the attacking line.
"I'm really excited to have her on board and I'm sure the Thunder Family will give her a very warm welcome!"
Neal marks Thunder's first new signing after the announcements that shooter Kathryn Turner and mid-court player Laura Malcolm have re-signed for the franchise.
The first chance to see Thunder taking to court will be in the British Fast5 All Stars Championship which will be live on Sky Sports in October.
The opener will be based on teams' finishing places from the 2019 season and as a result Thunder will take on Wasps Netball in what should be a storming Grand Final rematch.
Prior to that the Vitality Roses have announced they will head to South Africa in November for a three-match series and they will go head-to-head with the SPAR Proteas at the Velodrome in Cape Town on November 29, 30 and December 1.
Netball is back on your screens in October with the Fast5 All Stars Championship. We will cover all the twists and turns of the off-season as the Vitality Netball Superleague teams shape their squads for the 2020 season, which you can follow on Sky Sports.
