Newcastle Eagles Women begin their 2026/27 Championship campaign at Leicester Riders on Sunday with a more important question than where two early points will go: how quickly can a substantially rebuilt side turn Chloe Gaynor’s ideas into a working identity?
The Eagles return only three players from last season’s group — captain Alex Campbell, Natalie Cernohorska and academy graduate Grace Rae. Campbell enters her fifth senior season after a breakthrough campaign, while Cernohorska is working back from the ACL injury that restricted her to one appearance. Rae, now 18, is stepping into her second senior year while combining Eagles and Newcastle University basketball.[5][6][7]
That trio gives Gaynor a thread of continuity, but the opening trip is chiefly a first competitive examination for the newcomers around them. The coach said Campbell had led the team well in its opening weeks and described the squad’s emerging style in revealing terms: “The nature of how we play is chaotic,” adding that the encouraging part was seeing players begin to find solutions inside that chaos.[1]
Pre-season showed both promise and pressure points
The results themselves were defeats, but the two games offered different measures of progress. Newcastle lost 98–72 away to Caledonia Gladiators after committing 35 turnovers, yet new guard Nala Williams supplied 15 points, six rebounds and six assists, while Cordasia Harris posted 14 points and 12 boards. Maddy Hinton added 13 and Jakayla Johnson had 10 points, five rebounds, four assists and five steals.[3]
A week later, the Eagles pushed reigning quadruple champions Sheffield Hatters much closer in a 78–74 behind-closed-doors loss. Harris led Newcastle with 20 points and seven rebounds, Rae scored 12, and Johnson and Williams again reached double figures. Gaynor’s side also forced 27 turnovers and registered 16 steals — evidence that its disruptive approach can create chances, even if rebounding and late-game execution remain works in progress.[4]
Those performances are useful signals rather than proof. Leicester will introduce another new system, and Gaynor acknowledged that scouting individuals only goes so far in a season opener. Her players, she said, must “adjust and be adaptable” as the Riders reveal how their pieces fit together.[1]
Continuity awaits on the other side
Leicester’s rebuild begins from a broader retained base. Head coach Nick Moodey has brought back Mercy Ademusayo, Louisa Gibbins, Alex Baker, Alex Shaw, Hannah Gray and Caitlin Ryan, alongside Great Britain international Katie Januszewska. Moodey believes that core should support consistency and year-on-year development.[9]
For Newcastle, that makes the opener a useful test of whether a new roster can impose its energy before every combination is fully settled. The pre-season numbers suggest the Eagles can create disruption; Sunday will show whether they can convert it into a controlled competitive performance.
Game details: Leicester Riders v Newcastle Eagles Women, Sunday 4 October 2026, 6pm, Loughborough University Netball and Badminton Centre. Newcastle’s official preview says the game will be streamed through the SLB Women YouTube channel.[1][2]
Sources
[1] Newcastle Eagles Women at Leicester Riders preview
[2] Women’s SLB live fixtures and statistics
[3] Caledonia Gladiators 98–72 Newcastle Eagles Women
[4] Newcastle Eagles Women 74–78 Sheffield Hatters
[5] Alex Campbell returns to Newcastle Eagles
[6] Natalie Cernohorska returns to Newcastle Eagles
[7] Grace Rae returns to Newcastle Eagles
[8] Official Women’s SLB Championship schedule