With one game already down on this week’s schedule after last a rare Thursday evening clash between Archers and Crusaders, all eyes will be on tonight’s meeting on BBC Sport between powerhouse duo Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters and Nottingham Wildcats.

Perhaps rather surprisingly, both WBBL’s heavyweights will go up against each other off the back of respective defeats, with Hatter shaving lost at lowly Caledonia Pride last Saturday and Wildcats still stinging from a derby loss at Leicester.

Now would be the perfect time for the WBBL leaders to get their title defence back on track claims Nottingham’s Vanessa Da Silva – even if she is expecting an intense duel.

“I believe that the game against Hatters will be a tough one,” stressed the Wildcats’ forward.

“They have always been our rivals, so this game will be a battle and we need to work together as a team, as well as executing to come out with a victory.

“Sheffield are a very good team and you cannot underestimate them. We must try and make defensive stops and turn them into points.

“Even though we are at the top of the league, this year has shown that any team can win on any given night, so I believe that we have to be hungry for the win and must play to the best of our ability,” continued Da Silva.

“We have to do all the little things, make the extra effort plays to win this game and the next ones to secure the title again.

As for the loss to Leicester, she believes it can motivate them to knuckle down against Sheffield as well as for the last few fixtures of the campaign.

She added, “This past weekend was not a good one for us, since we did not play well and the Riders took the win because they showed up and played.

“I don’t think we have been playing to our full potential, and so this loss serves as a wake-up call for us to refocus as a team. We must get back into the lab and work even harder.

“We will bounce back from this and I believe we can do that, because we are a team that is familiar with battling our way to victory when the going gets tough,” concluded Da Silva, with Wildcats also able to take their revenge on Riders who they play at home on Sunday.

Tonight’s title showdown is one of six games across the weekend, which include a couple for Oaklands Wolves who will be acutely aware that time is running out to record their maiden WBBL Championship success. They face their fellow rookies Caledonia Pride tomorrow afternoon in Edinburgh and then Team Northumbria at Sport Central on Sunday.

The other Saturday game sees Archers on home soil yet again as they entertain Manchester Mystics, while Sunday will also see Pride entertain Crusaders.