Strathclyde Sirens' Beth Goodwin on belief, squad development and a new addition to the Vitality Netball Superleague franchise

"Party like it's 1999" is a phrase regularly used by those of us of a certain age, but for Strathclyde Sirens' Beth Goodwin, 1999 was actually the year in which she was born!

On Goodwin's birthday, Ricky Martin was about to go to No 1 in the charts with Livin La Vida Loca and a couple of months earlier, Scottish rugby fans had seen their side win the Five Nations championship.

The teenager's experience, both in Superleague and on the international stage, belies her age.

Goodwin made her senior Scotland debut at just 16-years-old, she's already been to a Commonwealth Games and is now enjoying her third season at Sirens.

"I've definitely felt progression over those three seasons and there's been a lot of learning on and off court," said Goodwin to Sky Sports ahead of their Round 12 match against Manchester Thunder.

"That's really helped me find myself as a netballer and what I want to do and I'm just grateful for my teammates around me.

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"It can be tough if you're not winning, even if you feel like you're putting good stuff out on court, but they [your team-mates] always keep you going.

"This season has felt a bit different. I think that the team has really clicked well and even though we've not had the best results on the scoreboard, we're finding other things that we can tap into and really focus on."

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Sirens are preparing to host Thunder on Monday night, the match will be live on Sky Sports Mix and Action as well as being streamed live on the Sky Sports YouTube channel.

Although the Scottish side are approaching it off the back of a 51-47 loss to Team Bath, it wasn't a loss that derailed them... far from it.

"We're taking a lot of positives from that match. We've really been focusing on our consistency throughout the season. That's been a part of our challenge, to remain consistent for the full 60 [minutes]," added Goodwin.

"We felt that we were really up at the level that we know that we can play at and we just wanted to be able to maintain that. However, Bath are a really great side and they were able to get a lead on us near the end.

"We're not too downhearted by the loss. It was a small margin and that's always really difficult, but it's instilled a belief in us that we know what we're capable of and we can continue to try and progress from that for the rest of the season."

Goodwin shared that they have set goals when it comes to facing Karen Greig's outfit - the home team realise that it's going to be a tough task but are ready to hit it at pace.

"I think that the key is preparation and going into the match knowing what we're going to face. So that's a lot of analysis and focusing on what we're going to do and nailing our basics when we go out to play them," said Goodwin.

For all of us looking in, Cat Tuivaiti's presence at Sirens was incredibly exciting and inspiring - Goodwin, and everyone at the Superleague franchise, also shared those feelings.

"Cat coming into the squad was great for everyone. She brought an immense wealth of knowledge around the game and being a shooter, she also helped me with my play.

"I could also learn from her, watching her flashy tricks and everything... even though I'm not quite brave enough to pull them off yet," said Goodwin with a smile.

"She just brought a different perspective of the game to what Scottish sides are usually used to. So, that was so valuable and we all really appreciated her help. She's been a great addition to the team."

"What I took from it is that Cat is always playing with confidence and having the belief in yourself and your teammates. Belief that you can pull these things off and have the connection with them. It's all about speed as well and being able to move the ball at such a pace to outplay your opponent basically and that really helps mix things up as well."

The respect for Tuivaiti, as a netballer and as a person, expanded wider than just within Sirens' four walls. There isn't any disgruntlement at losing her presence for the rest of the season, instead Goodwin's joy at the news that 'Team Tuivaiti is becoming three' is shared by all.

"That was just the best news. We're all so delighted for her and so excited that we're going to have a mini Siren. Jim and Cat are going to be the best parents so we're also very excited for them," said Goodwin of her team-mate.

Despite Goodwin being so young, she speaks eloquently about the value of the support system around her to help her study for an Accounting and Finance degree alongside her Superleague career and also about the role of netball for others.

"With Sirens we also try and do as much as we can off court," she said. "We've got the Sirens for Success programme and it tries to target girls that maybe aren't as active as others.

"It introduces them to netball and other aspects of their life and health to try and get them into a better positive mental state about exercise. It's a really great programme.

"You make friends for life through netball, it's just a great sport and the popularity that it is gaining is deserved because it is such a great sport with so many elements to it that benefit life."

On Monday evening this shooter's focus will be on performing her own role, under significant pressure from Thunder's experienced defenders, and making sure that the home side look to achieve the goals that they've set themselves against one of the league's top sides.

Watch Strathclyde Sirens hosting Manchester Thunder live on Sky Sports Mix and Action on Monday, April 1 from 7.15pm and will be streamed live on the Sky Sports YouTube channel. Also, Sky Sports will be showing every game of the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup in July.