Saracens Mavericks head coach Camilla Buchanan praised her side's grit after two tough games in the Netball Superleague.

The Mavs trailed for most of the contest at Team Bath, a gap that got up to nine points midway through the second quarter, before finally getting their noses in front with seven minutes to go and clinching a 66-62 win.

They returned to Hatfield and their Hertfordshire Sports Village home two days later to face reigning champions Manchester Thunder.

And although that ended in a 63-56 loss, Thunder did most of the damage in the first quarter, which they won 17-11.

After that Mavs held them to just a one-point deficit.

The games highlighted areas that still need work on but the boss was more than happy with the spirit of the group. 

"We made it hard for ourselves," she said of the win at Bath. "We shouldn’t have put ourselves in that position in the first quarter and we were a bit edgy throughout the whole game.

"The last quarter though, we really gained control and I’m so proud of the group for getting themselves over the line.

"We've proved that we have grit and that we can pull through in tight matches."

And reflecting on the game with Thunder, whose win means they have now claimed seven victories out of eight games played, Buchanan says just consistency is needed.

She said: "We love playing at home with that crowd and we always step up a notch.

"Thunder are a quality side but we had opportunities to not only come back in the game but to win it.

"Our turnover stats were really good but we’ve got to figure out how we can convert them more consistently."

And after the hectic schedule over the weekend, Mavs now get a bit of a break before their next game, London Pulse the visitors to HSV on Monday, April 3, for a 6pm start.

And Buchanan is looking forward to renewing an old rivalry.

She said: "Pulse is a bit of a London derby so we’ll be well up for that fight.

"But we’ve got a lot of work to do between now and then."