Loughborough boss Burgess on why her side will bounce back stronger after Vitality Netball Superleague Grand Final defeat

Defiance in defeat was the message from Loughborough Lightning head coach Vic Burgess as her side were beaten by Manchester Thunder in the Vitality Netball Superleague Grand Final.

Lightning were beaten 60-53 in a frenetic final at the Copper Box Arena, with Burgess full of praise for the way her players kept going in difficult circumstances.

Lightning goal attack Ella Clark went off injured just minutes into the game before Thunder blitzed the reigning champions 20-8 in the first quarter, a lead they never relinquished. “I’m really proud of the girls for pulling together and having that fight back throughout the whole game,” said Burgess.

“We came in at half-time and we were really positive because we felt that we could just get rid of that first half and move forward.

“They all pulled together and put up such a great fight. We reacted well under the circumstances it just wasn’t our day today.”

Despite the early setbacks, Lightning fought back through the pinpoint shooting of goal shooter Mary Cholhok to reduce the initial gap.

Burgess was pleased with the way her side kept pushing right to the very end: “We lost to a tenacious Thunder side who have been unstoppable all season, to have a gap of seven is something that I’m really proud of from our perspective,” added Burgess.

“We had a real fight until the end, we were really competitive apart from that first quarter.

“It was a massive effort from our squad in that second half in the way that we pushed on – we were wanting interceptions, we were wanting to win ball and turn it into a goal.”

The injury to Clark was a big blow for Lightning, with the England international a key part of their attack and players visibly upset by the injury.

Burgess focused on keeping her