Netball Apr 03, 2026

Netball Super League: England's Jess Shaw targeting NSL final after return to Loughborough Lightning for 2026 season

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
Netball Super League: England's Jess Shaw targeting NSL final after return to Loughborough Lightning for 2026 season

Loughborough Lightning star Jess Shaw is targeting a strong season for club and country as she seeks to ensure her England spot at this summer's Commonwealth Games.

Having left the Lightning in 2020, Shaw has had successful spells with Team Bath, Severn Stars and Birmingham Panthers but now returns to last year's Netball Super League runners-up as a far more polished player.

Ahead of her side's season-opener against LexisNexis Dragons on Saturday, live on Your Site, Shaw set out her goals for the year, which features the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow across July and August.

"This squad is really exciting," Shaw told Your Site.

"They've been in finals now for five consecutive years, so hopefully we get into that final again this year.

"With it being a Commonwealth Games year, for me, coming to Lightning is going to help me perform. I've got the team behind me and if I am performing, I'll be out on that court."

Her return got off to an encouraging start as the Lightning started the year by winning the Super Cup over the weekend.

Shaw also explained that some of the thinking behind her move to Loughborough was that she will get playing time across both the wing attack and centre positions.

She added: "Coming into a Commonwealth Games year, it's really important that I am at the top of my game and playing across both positions, so hopefully I can get that this season."

Shaw's rise to the top of the sport is made all the more remarkable by the fact she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes as a teenager.

The 29-year-old still has to manage her health carefully but finds motivation in showing younger people with the condition that they can succeed in elite sport.

"I still find it really challenging living with Type 1 diabetes," Shaw said. "It still catches me off guard depending on different games and things.

"But over the years I have started to get a bit more to grips with what works for me on gamedays, and training around that.

"But again, some days it's just out of my control and I'm really struggling to kind of get it in that range.

"For me, it's just doing it for the ones that are younger and look up to me as a role model, to know that even living with Type 1 diabetes, it doesn't stop you and when you do get to the top it's actually a lot sweeter."

Watch the Netball Super League live on Your Site this season, starting with champions London Pulse vs Manchester Thunder, live on Your Site Mix and Your Site+ from 7.25pm on Friday, February 27

Tags:

netball news

Share this article

Related Posts

Guide to the Netball Super League 2026 season as Pulse hope to defend their title while Rhinos look to charge

Guide to the Netball Super League 2026 season as Pulse hope to defend their title while Rhinos look to charge

Last year we saw the rejuvenated Netball Super League go from 12 teams to 10, and introduce the game-changing super shot. As the season commences on...

Netball Super League 2026: Fixtures, results, free streams and podcasts as London Pulse defend title

Netball Super League 2026: Fixtures, results, free streams and podcasts as London Pulse defend title

'Man City offer Rodri new contract'Manchester City have offered Rodri a new contract, according to Fabrizio Romano.It is claimed t...

Jamaican netball legend Romelda Aiken-George hits back at online trolls 'throwing little tantrums' over West Coast Fever signing

Jamaican netball legend Romelda Aiken-George hits back at online trolls 'throwing little tantrums' over West Coast Fever signing

Romelda Aiken-George was announced as Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard's replacement at West Coast Fever for the 2026 season, as the fellow Sunshine Girl is e...

Pakistan netball: Meet the team who are backed by Super League club Birmingham Panthers and are inspiring change in the sport

Pakistan netball: Meet the team who are backed by Super League club Birmingham Panthers and are inspiring change in the sport

In the space of a week, Farah Hasan went from playing netball to not being able to walk.In June 2017, when Hasan was 21-years-old, she was diagnosed w...

Jaz Brown: England rose reflects on her journey into netball after impressive international debut against New Zealand

Jaz Brown: England rose reflects on her journey into netball after impressive international debut against New Zealand

Jaz Brown didn’t take the traditional route into playing professional netball, unlike many players who start playing from very young and grow in the s...

England 80-37 Jamaica: Vitality Roses secure dominant win in first Test

England 80-37 Jamaica: Vitality Roses secure dominant win in first Test

England's Vitality Roses produced a confident and dominant performance at the Copper Box Arena in London, overcoming a determined Jamaica 80-37.Englan...