NSL Unwrapped - NXT Gen League Rounds 13-16

Team Bath and Nottingham Forest both sprung shock victories on Loughborough Lightning as the league leaders’ perch at the top began to shake. 

Bath took victory by a two-point margin while Forest edged their encounter by one point to inflict two of the three defeats Lightning have suffered all season.

It came amid a strong spell for Nottingham Forest. They took three wins from four, including a victory over Bath to move into the top four ahead of London Pulse.

Elsewhere, NIC Leeds Rhinos and Birmingham Panthers also enjoyed some good form with just one loss each in the period.

Tussle at the top

Team Bath delivered a 52-50 win over Loughborough Lightning at home in Rround 14 to move them closer to the top of the table in the NXT Gen standings.

Defeat by the same margin to Nottingham Forest in the previous round meant Bath’s gains were not as substantial as they would have hoped, but the Blue & Gold were able to bounce back in style with victory over the leaders.

Lightning beat NIC Leeds Rhinos 52-42 in Round 13, before responding resolutely from their defeat to Bath with a 55-40 victory over LexisNexis Cardiff Dragons in Round 15.

But Lightning’s defeat to Nottingham Forest in Round 16 combined with Team Bath inflicting a 50-36 victory over Manchester Thunder kept the pressure on.

While Bath also secured a 61-52 victory over London Pulse in Round 15, they still remain four points off the table summit with Lightning also boasting a game in hand.

Forest flying

The newly-established Nottingham Forest staked their claim for developing exciting young talent in May with impressive wins over Team Bath, LexisNexis Cardiff Dragons and Loughborough Lightning.

It was a slender margin of victory over Bath that secured the three points as they triumphed 58-56 at the Motorpoint Arena in Round 13.

Their rich vein of form continued in the next round as they travelled to Cardiff to inflict a 65-56 defeat on Dragons at the House of Sport.

While they could not sustain their purple patch into Round 15, narrowly losing 58-56 to London Mavericks at Hertfordshire Sports Village, it was merely a blip in a stellar month for the Tricky Trees.

In an east Midlands derby against their Leicestershire neighbours, Forest emerged 58-57 victors in a thrilling encounter.

They benefited from London Pulse’s bye and defeats to Bath and Leeds to move three points ahead of the side from the capital into fourth.

Rhinos charge on

NIC Leeds Rhinos charged to a successful month as they remained in the chasing pack with three victories from four.

While their trip to the east Midlands resulted in a less than successful Round 13, losing 52-42 to league leaders Loughborough Lightning at the Sir David Wallace Arena, they soon turned the month around.

A home clash against London Mavericks provided a tight finish but Rhinos edged it with a 52-50 victory at the Canon Medical Arena.

And, having found their rhythm, they delivered a comprehensive victory over Manchester Thunder, winning 57-46 as they returned home to their titular city at the First Direct Arena.

They proved capable of continuing that form on the road as they edged a tight encounter against London Pulse 56-55 at the Copper Box Arena.

Panthers purr

Birmingham Panthers won two of their three matches in Rounds 13-16 with convincing victories over LexisNexis Cardiff Dragons and Manchester Thunder.

Both games saw the Panthers achieve margins of victory of 10 points or more as it proved a dominant period for the West Midlands outfit.

They kicked off Round 13 with a storming 58-41 defeat of Dragons at Coventry Skydome to notch their fifth win of the season.

Panthers had soon made that six as they beat Manchester Thunder 48-38 in the north west to move away from the group at the bottom of the table with two games in hand.

They could not sustain such form into Round 16, however, falling to a disappointing 66-50 defeat to London Mavericks at home.