Bayman out for season

NETBALL: NORTHERN Thunder's dynamic mid-court maestro Sara Bayman is looking at a lengthy recovery period after damaging her anterior cruciate ligament in the team's one-goal win over Surrey Storm in the FIAT Netball Superleague.

Bayman landed awkwardly and was left in great pain. She undergoes surgery this week to improve the stability in her knee, but the injury rules her out of the World championships this summer.

The wing-defence and centre was also due to join the rest of her England team-mates on tour to Jamaica later this month.

One of the league's outstanding players this season, Bayman has regularly put in match-winning performances and will be missed in the run-in to what is close to being a table-topping year for Thunder.

It is a swift double-whammy for Thunder, who recently lost skipper Karen Greig from their starting seven after she picked up a similar-looking knee injury.

The ACL tear is a common injury, with 80-per-cent of non-contact incidents occurring when a player pivots or lands from a jump.