#35 Admire & Inspire

I feel I must apologise, writing positive blogs hasn’t been very forthcoming of late & I’ve been using the excuse (to myself at least) that there’s nothing much positive in netball to write about. I’ve been a bit short of inspiration! 

What a lie that is though! There is phenomenal inspiration right on my doorstep. Given it’s the season of goodwill and frankly, after the year we’ve had, there can never be enough kindness & netball love! 

So, behold my list of inspirational, local, netball stalwarts, who don’t just have an impact on me but do so much for the local netball community! 

💜 Angie Osborne

Yes, let’s start with the blindingly obvious! You can accuse me of nepotism, she is my mother after all. 

Few facts about the mother dearest that you may not know! She started her netball career at Centre 😂 She has been volunteering in netball for a MEGA 47 years 👵🏼. 

If she didn’t do what she does, Meon Netball Club, one of the oldest clubs in Hampshire, would have folded years ago! 

I could go on about the impact she’s had outside the club for local leagues, county netball, umpires, youngsters, walking netball - the list is endless. I don’t have enough superlatives though and if I kept going I really would be accused of nepotism! (Like I haven’t already! 😉🤷🏽‍♀️) 

The highest compliment I can pay her really is that her impact is immeasurable. We need more Angie Osborne’s in the netball world! 

💜 Judy Yoxall

I’ve only known Judy around 8/9 years but her involvement in netball extends well beyond that. She ‘retired’ to Portsmouth a few years ago and the local netball community should be extremely pleased she did! 

However if she ‘retired’ to our fab city, goodness knows what she did in netball before hand! 

Her involvement has no bounds, from grass roots to performance pathway, walking netball, back to netball and everything in between - coaching, umpiring, mentoring, administrating. You name a role in netball and I would bet money Judy has done it! 

Her enthusiasm and passion for our great sport is completely contagious. 

What impresses me so much about Judy is that even at her age (I know, but I’m not telling!) she still wants to learn and keep fresh. It’s really admirable.  She will do anything for anyone and has a heart that’s just full of netball giving! 

💜 Kimmi Grainger & Karen Rock

You can’t really name one without the other. They are Meon Netball Club,  and once upon a time, East Hampshire Netball Association, legends.

Their impact is sizeable in local netball but in very different ways. 

Kimmi, in my opinion, was a Coach using practices and strategies well ahead of her time. Before ‘Player-centred’ was first coined, she took time to get to know her players, whatever age or ability, found out what motivated them & used that to get the very best out of them. Tactically she saw things, that even now, nearly 20 years after she finished coaching me, I still can’t see! 

I would go as far to say that every single one of her players played their best netball under her. I certainly did. 

Karen, her bestie, was and still is at the other end of the spectrum. A huge support off of the netball court through umpiring and administration. During my first years at Meon there was not a penny out of place in the club accounts: she ruled with an iron rod! 

Her commitment to netball is just unprecedented. Hours and hours of volunteering and no doubt, countless sacrifices, made to support netball. Again the impact is immeasurable. She is one of a kind. 

💜 Sheonah Forbes

I came across Sheonah as a junior player and indeed, coached her as an U18 County player. What a long time ago that was ! I do remember what an incredible team player she was on and off the court. She was super supportive of her team mates, incredibly fair and as Captain of her County side a remarkable communicator between player and Coach. 

We’ve always keep in contact but I next had dealings with her when I first gained my role at England Netball. Sheonah was actually the first Netball Development Community Coach, employed, a very impressive appointment. Sheonah was a trailblazer & a huge source of encouragement and inspiration to her fellow colleagues. It was a sad day when she left the role. 

These days Sheonah can be found at the other end of the netball spectrum, coaching & looking after the future England Roses as Head Coach of the Academy programme.

I could not be more proud - not only of the dizzy heights she has scaled but because she has never lost that sense of fairness, trailblazing or enthusiasm. I am sure there are times when they’ve wavered, no path to the top is straightforward, but her resilience, perseverance and decision to stay grounded  has definitely stood her in very good stead. 

She’s the Gosport girl whose done very good! There will be more to come, of that I am certain. 

💜 Joan Horton

Joan is unfortunately no longer operating in netball circles and netball is certainly poorer for it, in my opinion. 

She had the most profound effect on me in my formative netball years. As a very young player with no junior teams around during that time, she used to let me join in with senior training and was so encouraging, despite me being more of a hindrance than a help! 

I will always remember Joan’s dignity in the face of adversity and her unflappable nature when all those were panicking around her! She had an all knowing wisdom which served so many, so well, off the court.

Although her netball commitments have been cut and I hear she is more into amateur dramatics these days (she’d have seen a lot of that on various netball committees over the years! 😉), her netball legacy lives on in those of us she coached and taught and in her procedures and admin work that we still work with today. Clubs, leagues, committees and even our National Governing Body are better off for her work and will continue to be, in many years to come. 

Joan, if you’re reading, get back into netball, we need you! 😘

💜 Julie Parkinson 

Well I started with a family member so I might as well finish with one! It will give those ‘gossip-mongers’ and ‘keyboard warriors’ something to do for a few hours! 🙄

My little sis definitely got the ‘better player’ title out of the two of us and that’s fine, because I’ve always told everyone that I’m the better Coach! 

It’s not true though and you only have to glance at her achievements with Jelly Netball - a club she started herself and continues to more or less run, singlehandedly, to see why! 

It’s not just about the success of the Jelly Netball teams, which is unsurpassed in local junior netball, or even the youngsters Julie has coached who have gone on to better things in netball. 

At the very heart of it is giving young players the very best first experience so they fall in love with our great game and never leave! 

It’s about more than just netball, it’s about all that surrounds it - the education, the opportunities, the confidence and independence. Julie isn’t just a netball coach, she is a role model, a teacher, a leader and an inspiration. 

That impact is hard to measure but the vast number of players who keep in contact years after they go to Uni - or even end up being Julie’s team mate later on, gives you a very good indicator of how well regarded she is by her players. There is no better compliment than that. 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all the Netball heroes and volunteers out there. There’s never a better time than now, to share your netball heroes and make sure they know they are appreciated! 

#34 Let’s just do better

I honestly feel like it’s two steps forward and one step back! 

For all the AMAZING things we have seen & witnessed in the netball community this year, December has shown we still have a long way to go before Netball can be taken seriously as a global sport. 

The errors, unfortunate as they are, come from different ends of the spectrum, in fact different sides of the world. But the impact should not be underestimated - especially when Suncorp SuperNetball franchises are up for renewal at the end of 2021, breakdancing has entered into the Olympics before our great sport and we continue to struggle for exposure & meaningful sponsorship. 

We’ll start simple with the poster for the upcoming Roses Legends Test against Jamaica. Have you spotted the mistake yet? It’s been the talk of Twitter! It is of course, the image of seriously talented, George Fisher taking a shot...........in a WD bib! 

I 

Moving on.......

I managed to get my children sat down and suitably ‘distracted’ on Saturday allowing me to watch, at least some, of the Team Bath v Mavericks pre season friendly in peace & quiet. The excitement, on social media, for the first live UK game since March, was palpable - so was the disappointment as the live stream was lacking one thing, sound! 

It’s not just at home that these mistakes are being made and expectations not met. 

I’ve woken up today to a furore from Australia as the much downloaded NetballLive App has seemingly increased its price by around 500% overnight! 

I’m a big fan of the App, having paid £13.99 for a years pass for the last few years. It’s great value for money not just matches from the SSN but Tests and Constellation Cup matches too. The response has not been positive & it will be interesting what the take up is with the annual subscription no longer available. 

Also Down Under we’ve seen sanctions against Perth-based West Coast Fever as they have been found ‘cheating’ the salary cap and have now been deducted nine points before the 2021 season starts! https://supernetball.com.au/news/west-coast-fever-sanctioned-salary-cap-breach 

Diamonds legend Sharni Layton makes the point that maybe we shouldn’t have a salary cap, particularly if two teams this year have been found breaking it. Maybe a salary cap is, in part, holding back our sport? 

Sigh. 

My own frustration centres on the ease that some of these errors can be rectified or apologised for. The Roses Legends poster is a great example. 

Firstly, why isn’t there a process where marketing and promotional material is double or triple checked before publication? I come from a marketing background and it’s surely commonplace in any organisation wanting to succeed? And even if it did slip through those safety nets - human error is a fact of life, why hasn’t there been a quick website update or social media post along the lines of 

‘Whoops, we’re really sorry an error has obviously been made! Thanks to all those who have pointed it out, here’s the rectified image, please share this in future!’ 

Surely the netball family, after every thing we’ve done this year, deserve a bit of honesty? I think they’d probably appreciate it too. 

So, we come to the recent Goalden Globes, the EN ‘Oscars’ celebrating all that are volunteers. 

I’ll be honest, I was in two minds including this in today’s blog but conversations with more than one volunteer, who have been really disappointed, have persuaded me to include the following: 

If there is one year where we should be really pushing the boat out to thank our volunteers, it’s 2020. There are just not enough adjectives and I am not a good enough blogger to do them justice. 

The fact that the awards even took place, albeit online, is remarkable and huge plaudits to those who got it done. It’s an incredible feat. 

It was a huge opportunity to go above and beyond for volunteers just as they have gone above and beyond for netball. 

In many ways the awards did tick many ‘well done’ and ‘thank you’  boxes. There were even surprise gift boxes delivered in the day’s leading up to and following the presentation. I don’t think that’s ever been done before and was certainly appreciated by those who received them. 

When you organise something so huge and so important though it has to all be right, there is no room for error or misinterpretation. 

Criticisms include the the difference in nominations / shortlisting for the #RiseAgain Hero award compared to other categories. Also that in previous years all Long Service nominees have been acknowledged, this year we had winners. 

For me, these criticisms are all about managing expectations. 

There are also those nominated who have still not received their gift at the time of writing - as much as it’s a lovely gesture, it’s not fair if only some people are receiving them. 

My own opinion, having sat through all of the live YouTube broadcast was that for much of it we were really celebrating the efforts and achievements of the netball community. There were some fab, inspiring stories and really deserving recipients. 

There was also too much time, in my opinion, spent rewarding people for doing their jobs. I’m not saying that they haven’t done their jobs well but I thought the whole point of Goalden Globes was to celebrate volunteers. 

For me, the song & dance made of a said few took the shine off the majority who really deserved to be made a fuss of. 

Maybe December has just been a bad month. Maybe 2020 has just made me, and others, more cynical and we need to turn our frowns upside down! 

I do think that if any volunteer, even if it’s only one, is left disappointed after an awards ceremony that is meant to thank & celebrate volunteering, that is one too many. 

I also think that netball only has so many opportunities to break down that glass ceiling & fulfil the potential we have been banging on about for years. We’ve made great, great strides but we have to stop tripping ourselves up to realise and achieve what we are really capable of. 

#33 Pipe Dreams

The Southsea seafront building that used to house the museum of the National Royal Marines has been sold today. https://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/defence/portsmouths-old-royal-marines-museum-become-luxury-five-star-hotel-after-site-sold-3047095 

You may wonder what on earth that has to do with netball, well I’ll tell you. I was going to win Euromillions, buy it and base a fabulous netball centre there! 

Yes, really! 

My pipe dream is the latest in a long list of sites I have earmarked for my netball development home! It started in 1994 when the National Lottery was launched - I wasn’t even old enough to play! 

Mum and I used to walk to netball training past an old derelict building that would have been the perfect place for a sports hall and at least 4 outside courts. We’d have a gym and a meeting room and an office. Every week we used to make plans for it as we walked past! 

The building stayed derelict for a long time but in the last few years has been turned into a school, ironically with a lovely outdoor multi use facility but no netball lines! 🙄

The next facility in Portsmouth that became ‘available’ was HMP Kingston. A prison that had been mothballed and, importantly, up for sale! 😉

I had intimate knowledge of the site as I had worked there, for a brief time, in the early 2000s. It even had a full sized football pitch within the vast walls! There was already an old style gymnasium / sports hall and gym on site,  so it would have only taken a bit of remodelling! 

I had even researched historic planning permission, as the prison was around 100 years old. The only part of the site that had to remain for a new purpose, was the gate house. It would have made a very original entrance to a netball centre! 

That site was inevitably sold for housing and the diggers and construction vehicles moved in probably a year ago now. Not much progress has been made, mind you! 

So, my attention turned to the Royal Marines Museum which has a beautiful view across the Solent and vast grounds for outside courts and car parking! There may have even been room for a dome to ensure netball all year round! 

Alas, it was not meant to be on this occasion and it’s actually been sold to hoteliers. I look forward to visiting it as a 5 star hotel! 

So, on to my next search for the dream netball centre in Portsmouth! No stone will go unturned although I do wonder if a win on the lotto will be enough these days! 

#32 What a Suncorp SuperNetball season its been!

One of the reasons I haven’t written about Suncorp SuperNetball so far this season, is because every time I’ve gone to write a blog something else has blown up to add to the drama mix! 

I wanted to write about my dismay about the Super shot and then Lisa Alexander was no longer Diamonds Coach, I went to write about how excited I was about Nat Medhurst’s return to netball, if her partner could get permission to go into the Queensland Hub (she’d not long had a baby) and the next thing I know she’s retired! I wanted to express my frustration that CBass wasn’t being played, I blinked and the Australian Diamonds Captain had signed for a New Zealand team! 

One thing is definitely for sure, there was no shortage of talking points in SSN this year and we’re not quite at the end yet! But, with the a Grand Final of Vixens v West Coast Fever on the horizon I figured now was as good a time as any to try, at least, to talk all things Suncorp! 

Let’s start with the utterly amazing (and frankly terrifying if your not Aussie!) young talent that has emerged from the league this year. From Georgie Horjus to Sunday Aryang there is some seriously talented young athletes who have stepped up to the plate. I don’t remember a season where so many talented youngsters have caught the eye. 

As a ‘Pom’ with a love of all things 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🌹 it’s a worry! 

Let’s just take a minute to consider why there is such an influx of young talent during this, let’s face it, very strange year. I have an inkling that the ever changing circumstances and the final decision to have squads of 12, as well as the seemingly never ending dramas of rule changes - particularly rolling subs, definitely had a part to play. 

To me it seems absurd, at the back end of the season, that we may not have seen Georgie Horjus at all, if we’d just had 10 per squad. We’ll never know if she’d have had a shot, so to speak, but there is a chance she wouldn’t. 

Surely it’s something, along with a great deal of many other things, that needs to be on the table for discussion at whatever ‘end of season’ debriefing Netball Australia & partners have. Just a suggestion for the Aussie NGB though, you may want to include some of the players in that conversation this time!

Which brings me neatly to the Supershot. The competition’s ‘plaster’ for something that, in my opinion, is not broken. There is nothing to fix. 

I do pride myself on seeing all sides of every story though - I can see beautifully from my mountain top but things can be a bit blurry from others! I will always try to have a look, no matter how high! 

4 rounds in and to be honest I’d just about had enough. I was literally ‘tuning out’ of the last 5 minutes of every quarter. It wasn’t exactly ‘edge of the circle, edge of the seat’ stuff I’m afraid. Now we are at the back end of the season, I fail to remember any games Supershot had an impact on, without looking it up! 

Supershot has not exactly set the netball world alight.

That’s not to say it hasn’t been spoken about, in depth, by commentators, pundits, coaches, players, fans alike. Many, many column inches have been dedicated to the debate. 

If that’s what Netball Australia wanted: they have succeeded in spades! 

Supershot. It’s a no from me! 

As much as I LOVE my netballlive app, I will reconsider purchasing it next season if they continue with the 2 point charade. 

For me, the real ‘stars of the show’ this SSN season has been the commentary team. Sue Gaudion, Liz Ellis & Cath Cox, in particular, have been outstanding. The knowledge, insight & entertainment value of these three, alone, is unrivalled across any sport. 

Bear in mind my dismay at the irrelevance and frankly boredom on the Supershot, I actually found myself watching games for these three legends of netball! I’m not sure there is a better compliment for a sports commentator? 

And so we come to, what for me, is the biggest talking point of SSN this year. Rightly or wrongly. The drama surrounding Diamonds Captain Caitlyn ‘CBass’ Bassett. 

It has played out in a way that we only see in netball, frankly. A similar situation in football, for example, would see tabloid headlines, ‘sources’ offering salacious ‘fake news’ and gossip mongering fodder! 

In brief, if you don’t know. CBass has largely been on the subs bench for the Giants this season, coach Julie Fitzgerald preferring the moving circle option of English Rose Jo Harten & rookie Kiera Austin. With her Diamonds place at stake and no other SSN options available Bassett has take the unprecedented step of moving to the New Zealand league for 2021. 

To her absolute credit, in what is an extraordinary, stressful situation, CBass has remained dignified, professional and set an example throughout. What a way to conduct herself and what an incredible example to others, including influential junior players. 

All parties have ‘had their say’ post move, which has offered an extraordinary insight into SSN transfers, ‘critical conversations’ and different points of view. 

CBass’ interview on netball podcast ‘Inner Circle’ is definitely worth a listen if you fancy a really classy and intriguing insight into professional netball - elite sport is  definitely not for the feint hearted and can be brutal, even for the most successful. 

https://t.co/Z3WYgwH6hO

To tell her truth without a hint of malice or bad feeling, in such a way: what an incredible ambassador for netball & women’s sport. 

With hindsight, it was a bit unrealistic of me to write a blog that people would want to read from start to finish on the whole SSN season! 

I’m wrapping up without mentioning the indigenous round and the controversy around Jemma MiMi, SSN’s only indigenous player, not getting any court time. I’ve not mentioned Wright and Jencke leaving their franchises or passed comment on their potential successors and I haven’t had the chance to pile the superlatives on those players retiring such as Caitlyn Thwaites and Teigan Phillip. 

I’ve purposely ignored the gross ‘spitting’ saga that has no place in society, let alone netball. My heart does goes out to Verity Charles of West Coast Fever, who was on the receiving end of such disgusting behaviour. Despicable. 

One thing is for sure there was certainly a lot of action both on and off the court during SSN 2020! It’s worth making the point (my last of this blog!) how extraordinary it is that the season went ahead at all amidst a global pandemic! The work behind the scenes would have been immense and the sacrifices players, coaches, support staff, media partners etc etc made is nothing short of jaw dropping. 

So, whether Supershot is your bag or not, whether you agree with me that Sue Gaudion is a commentary genius or Pitman had her best season despite being ‘let go’ by Thunderbirds, we all need to take a moment to count our lucky stars we enjoyed Suncorp SuperNetball, this year, at all. 

Heartfelt thanks to all who contributed to making it possible! 

#31 Weight of the world on their shoulders

This week some of the NGB employees have been posting their thanks on social media for presents received from their employers. 

Not before time. 

I know, first hand, what a passionate, talented & loyal workforce we have working for us in England and to finally see some recognition of their dedication is heart warming and frankly, long over due. 

It’s a positive sign in the change of direction from the new leadership team and I am sure we will see more. 

As much as I am delighted employees are finally seeing some recognition for going above and beyond, it’s the netball volunteers, who are bearing the brunt of all things Covid-19. 

My club is returning to ‘friendly’ fixtures this weekend. The respective leagues we play in, all run by volunteers, have had to climb proverbial mountains to get us back on court. The correspondence, documents and guidance are out of this world - that’s before you consider the vast amount of reading and research that’s had to be done to complete them! 

The people on the end of these documents and emails are, of course, more volunteers, within club settings. 

These are the people who, firstly, have to read all this information, understand it and communicate it to their club membership. They are booking venues (or trying to - those that are open may well be pricing themselves out of usage, £199.50 we were quoted recently for a match!) writing risk assessments, setting out one-way systems and sourcing PPE equipment for the best price! 

It’s the time this all takes that would take your breathe away if you actually knew! To pay someone professionally to do all this would surely cost thousands of pounds? 

The responsibility to also get this right is too huge for an adjective to describe it properly! Get it wrong and you could be in trouble with the local / county / regional or even national governing body. 

Set that aside a moment, is it too strong to say, actually, it could be a matter of life or death? Because in a worst case scenario, no matter how unlikely we may think it is, that is what it comes down to, isn’t it? 

And here we are, yet again, leaning on our awesome army of netball volunteers to again come up with the goods! To make sure we still have opportunities to play despite a global pandemic and to make sure thousands of ‘ballers stay safe. 

That’s quite a responsibility, voluntarily. 

So, if you are reading this and are one of these fabulous, passionate people who have got our great game moving again. Thank you. It will never be enough and you deserve so much more. Never think you are not appreciated. You most certainly are. 

Here’s to all the netball volunteers. 

Here’s to being back on court again (weather dependant, this weekend, think!) and here’s to the future of netball - where, hopefully, we learn lessons during these difficult times and volunteers are at the heart of our gratitude going forward. 

#30 I’m a World Class Netball Coach

Some statement ay!?! Caught your attention though! 

It’s National Coaching Week, an initiative by Sports Coach UK that runs every year, to empower sports coaches and raise awareness.  

Sports Coach UK says: 

‘The awareness campaign - which empowers athletes, coaches and the public to celebrate great coaching - will centre on the need to ‘Support Your Coach’, kicking off with the #GreatCoachingPledge that will call in the nation to give some of their own time, sharing thanks and support for the coaching community’

I am a huge advocate of coaches - I believe it can be a hugely isolating role and often goes unappreciated, especially at grass roots. So any campaign that celebrates coaching has a big thumbs up from me! 

One of the responsibilities I loved about my previous role as a Netball Development Community Coach was working with up & coming coaches, supporting them in their qualifications, mentoring and general hand holding! 

I may not be in that role anymore but that hasn’t stopped me in a voluntary capacity! 

Coaches Network is a group of local netball coaches I put together 2 years ago to share ideas, best practice and generally be a support network. We tried to meet up either face to face or online every month before COVID-19 took a grip. Even through lockdown the conversations and morale boosting has been strong. 

Which brings me back to the controversial ‘I am a World Class Coach statement’! 

One of the things I notice in Coaches Network ALOT and speaking to other, mainly female, coaches across a variety of sports, is the under confidence in our own abilities and the almost apologetic nature when we (reluctantly!) speak about our achievements. 

It is quite remarkable and also really quite sad. 

I was delighted to attend the Project 500 Zoom Q&A with Judy Murray during lockdown. What a worthwhile hour. I learnt heaps and was so inspired. 

The two stand outs, even months ahead are definitely: 

💜 Step out of your comfort zone: it’s amazing what you can learn & achieve. 

Judy told of her reluctance to ‘spread the women’s coaching word’ for fear of public speaking, until an associate pointed out that she was perhaps, part of the problem! You’ve got to see it to achieve it! 

💜 What are you World Class in? 

She told us it took her a long time to realise but she is a world Class Coach in her own right. She is a World Class Tennis Coach of Under 10s. 

The message was definitely one of ‘why are the ‘best’ coaches coaching elite squads and programmes? You’ve got to have the best people coaching at the best level for them and the participants.’ 

My understanding is you have to have the right / best coaches coaching your beginner juniors because this is what sets them up for potential success - whether that’s a life long love of sport or the other end of the spectrum: world titles and elite success. 

It’s simple really but it smacked me in the face like a wet fish! 

Ever since that Zoom Q&A, alongside some, frankly feminist, as well as coaching- themed, reading and listening (I am a sucker for a podcast!) I have gone out of my way to step out of my comfort zone. 

It’s take courage and an enormous amount of energy to get over some anxieties - about how I am perceived, about how I look / sound and under confidence in whether my experiences, my knowledge is enough. 

But frankly, how can I mentor up & coming coaches if I don’t step out of my own comfort zone? 

One of the consequences of me ‘stepping out’ can be found here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1OXFImrVL9ft9Hd8WB9oYJ 

It’s not perfect but it is real! 

I have another opportunity to step out of my comfort zone as just prior to starting this blog I agreed to be part of a webinar speaking about returning to coaching from lock down. I’m sweating just thinking about it! It’s another opportunity to share my experiences though and also I never come away from these type of events without learning something myself. Genuinely. 

So, in conclusion and to round up my Coaching Week blog, I am a World Class Back to Netball Coach. 

There it is in black and white! There is no one raising an eyebrow more than me, I can assure you, but frankly I can back it up with figures, experience and expertise. I have passion, I have sustainability, I have confidence. 

I am a World Class Back to Netball Coach. 

What are you World Class at? What could you be World Class at? 

#29 Defence of the Netball Realm

If there’s one thing I didn’t expect to be doing during 2020 it’s defending our National Governing Body! It’s fair to say I haven’t been their no1 fan over the years, but 2020 has thrown up all sorts of surprises! 😉

The netball family is obviously keen to get back on court - many leagues and competitions have been cancelled and most  ‘ballers haven’t been near a netball court since March. 

England Netball, in my opinion, have done an AMAZING job in last few weeks of launching the #riseagain campaign and explaining (for those members wishing to know!) how they’re going to get us back on court, safely. They have also made it very clear this is not a race and netball family safety is a priority. 

I will admit to being a reluctant attendee to one of the Rise Again Zoom meetings. No one else within my club was available to attend 🙄 and I did make a promise to my Netball in the Community ‘ballers that I will keep up to date on all the latest guidance. 

So, slightly late to proceedings and without my video on as I was eating my dinner, I was prepared to half listen and even had a note book by my side! 

Literally from the opening sentence, I was transfixed! My dinner went cold and my pen was poised! 

The level of professionalism, detail and sensitivity throughout the presentation was exceptional. That shouldn’t really be a surprise from an award winning NGB, but I think sometimes we forget the extraordinary circumstances we find ourselves in. Maybe we’ve, unfortunately, become too used to the coronavirus terminology, news reports about death rates and track & trace information to remember this is something no one has ever had to deal with before - let alone an NGB more used to organising competitions, courses and performance analysis for the Roses! (Amongst lots of other things obvs!) 

Some of the stand outs for me included: 

💜 The amazing analysis completed: for every 10 minutes of footage, 6 hours of analysis was completed. 

💜 Think basketball & netball are similar games? Think again! Especially when it comes to the risk of passing on coronavirus. The amount of time ‘ballers are face to face is far superior to basketball, where much more of the action takes place side to side. 

💜 30% discount on affiliations for those members effected by coronavirus. The sensitive & understanding way this was presented was, I think, well thought through. EN has encouraged those who can, pay the full amount in order to help netball #riseagain 

💜 So many bases covered in so much detail! In the limited time they had the presenters did an awesome job of pitching the information, the problems EN face and the solutions they are putting together. The level of detail was startling but we weren’t bombarded by facts & figures for the sake of it - the examples given were valid, understandable and used to manage expectations. 

The level of work and detail really is phenomenal, which makes it all the more frustrating that there is beginning to be murmurs of criticism of EN, particularly on social media. 

It really does beggar belief that I am the one up in arms defending them against the criticism! 

Some may say I am wasting my breath. They may have a point, but the unfairness of it all really sticks in my throat. 

EN don’t want members off the courts! Their whole existence is based on people playing the sport! 

I don’t know how many of their staff are furloughed but I know some are. Despite this they have written a ‘return to play’ document for the government at a moment’s notice, organised, promoted, planned and delivered a range of online training sessions, communicated their plans with members and continued their ‘normal’ work of netball governance. 

In my opinion the criticism is ludicrous, uninformed & completely unconsidered. 

To ask questions which have already been answered, if only the people asking them had joined the zoom call or watched the recording, is just a waste of everyone’s time. 

To me, it also shows a commitment to stir trouble rather than get behind netball when it really needs us the most! 

Wouldn’t the time be better spent supporting the work being done to get us back on court, coming together with the netball community to help netball #riseagain and finding solutions to the challenges ‘ballers face during the pandemic? 

I’ve seen some critics ‘excuse’ their negative comments by confirming netball is their business or livelihood. Understandably they are worried. 

But, again, wouldn’t be the time be spent better working through coronavirus challenges than moaning on social media? I too earn a living through netball via ‘Netball in the Community’. I have never been so busy and could fill my evening sessions for lockdown 1:1 and small group sessions three times over. 

As always, in general society, not just netball, it is a minority that spoil it for the vast majority. The netball community is, by enlarge, extremely supportive and right behind the #riseagain campaign. 

If you haven’t seen the #riseagain presentation I strongly suggest you make some time to do so. Don’t let the length put you off it really is worth it! 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?utm_campaign=1485548_RiseAgain+-+Launch+-+Clubs+%26+Leagues&v=dHQlMb0zFdU&feature=youtu.be&utm_source=All+England+Netball+Association+Limited&dm_i=4NYO%2CVU98%2C3H5IUD%2C3XGV8%2C1&utm_medium=email

I also urge you to become an EN member for the 20/21 season. There is a 30% discount if you need it and an email have gone out to all last years members to make the process heaps simpler & quicker. 

By coming together, all of us, as a proper netball community netball will rise again! We are always stronger together. 

#28 Sexism in Netball

#27 CAPS

According to the NGB website the Club Action Plan Scheme (CAPS) is designed as a ‘development tool which enables you to develop a wide range of areas within your club’. 

To be fair to the NGB they acknowledge the vast amount of work volunteers put in to make netball happen and go on to say ‘ England Netball relies on volunteers and clubs to help us in all areas, and they make a huge contribution to the game of netball. We have developed a toolkit to help you pull together the evidence you will need to gain the accreditation and will show you key areas where you might need further work.’

https://www.englandnetball.co.uk/support/support-for-organisations/clubs/caps/ 

In essence, CAPs is meant to help volunteers run their netball club - give them the tools to make it easier and ensure netball happens in a safe way, so participants keep coming back for more! 

Except it doesn't, well not in my opinion anyway. I’ve just finished coordinating my third CAPs folder, and despite assurances that ‘it’s so much easier and quicker’ online, it’s not. 

In fact I would go as far to say it’s much more difficult and takes much longer. 

It has taken me best part of a year from first email to confirmation that we have passed. 11 months if you take out the month long ‘break’ I took from it. 

That in itself should tell you everything you need to know about CAPs - I had to take a break from completing it because it became so stressful, overwhelming and all-consuming. 

This is a tool that’s meant to help volunteers! 

I’m happy to explain some examples to emphasis my point - there are far more then just these three  though! 

1) 6 months for my DBS check. To put this in some context I had to do another DBS for my job just before Christmas: which took 5 days! I even worked out what the problem was (automated email for payment was going to an old work email - those who know my old employers will see the irony!) but still nothing was done! I called the DBS service myself - where they did indeed confirm my suspicions! Eventually, after nearly 6 months, the NGB took payment over the phone! 

2) The vast amount of chasing up I needed to do. To their credit I know how hard our local NGB staff members work - but with a part-time NDO (Full time until recent years but the County has not got any smaller!) and the fact that they were over subscribed with CAPs folders ('‘We had such a high number of folders at this assessment - think the competition changes definitely contributed as we had by far the most folders!’') The poor staff members must be stretched to the limit. I know they have targets and successful CAPs folders are one measure of success. Perhaps there was just too many to support in the last year, maybe they wanted some held over until the next year!?!

3) Over qualified volunteers! Our Safeguarding Officer is a high ranking Children’s Social Worker and as such her qualification superseded the documents listed to be verified. I wont go into detail but honestly, it caused so much adversity we nearly lost a valued volunteer over it! 

In conclusion the CAPs folder just doesn’t do what it sets out to do! I would go as far to say it’s become a hindrance, not a help. 

It’s probably best to confirm I do agree, in principle, to some of what CAPs sets out to achieve. Of course clubs should have safeguarding measures in place, an appropriate number of qualified first aiders, regular communication with parents and qualified coaches looking to up skill. 

You only have to watch the recent ITV investigation into British Gymnastics to know how important these checks are. 

Our already overworked and undervalued club volunteers, the ones completing this never ending CAPs folder, probably don’t have time to up skill everyone on the benefits of website design, for example, at a committee meeting though. 

My research indicates there may even be clubs that ‘fake’ evidence or have committee members ‘for the sake of CAPs ’ in order to pass the accreditation. 

Why do clubs need the CAPs accreditation anyway? Well, in some areas, leagues demand that all clubs competing must have at least a bronze CAPS accreditation. 

It is the ONLY reason I had to go through this process. 

I am pretty sure a brief, but concise, checklist of qualifications and documents - with support from NGB members of staff as to where volunteers can obtain such qualifications, would be a beneficial alternative for all. It would also help those staff members plan such courses! 

I am not an expert but common sense dictates that list should include 

- a recent safeguarding / child protection course

- an in-date first aid qualification

- relevant equality training

- DBS checks for all adults working with juniors 

- check that coaches have relevant qualifications and recent CPD. 

How many of each document would reflect how many members the club has. 

I also agree that these qualifications should be regularly checked and updated. 

I don’t think it needs to have whether a Club cheque book has two signatories on it (who uses cheque books anymore anyway!?!), different ways the club communicates with members (if they weren’t communicating effectively they wouldn’t be a club!) or a declaration that committee members live at the same address. (Really!?!) 

As the CAPs folder stands at present I would estimate at least 50% of it is either not relevant or can be lost. That’s half the work load for our fabulous netball volunteers and half the work load for our NGB staff members - resources that can be deployed in more beneficial ways. 

I am a huge advocate of our army of netball volunteers, netball simply wouldn’t happen without them. I believe we need to be making their job easier  in order to administrate, organise and grow our great game. 

We need more hardworking, passionate volunteers not less. 

CAPs needs an urgent review and until that happens my advice to all netball volunteers is not to touch it unless you really have to! 

#26 Coaching during Lockdown

Anyone else tearing their hair out now? I know we’ve had a few ‘relaxations’ but this #lockdown scenario is really starting to get to me.

Thank goodness for netball because I honestly think it is the only thing that is keeping me sane at the moment.

I decided to see if there was any need, firstly for 1:1 sessions, then small group sessions when groups of 6 was allowed, about 3 weeks ago. The response has been mind blowing! I’m a little worried that I’ve created a monster and people may start getting annoyed that I can’t fit them in, but that’s a worry for another day!

I’m leading the sessions around my husband’s shifts because, if you didn’t know already, I have a couple of daughters, aged 7 & 2, who need looking after! In the nicest way possible they are why I need to get out to netball! Anyone who is homeschooling, looking after a toddler or both during coronavirus, will know where I am coming from!

These sessions have had a fair amount of planning put into them, as always from me, to be honest! ‘Preparation prevents piss poor performance’ is one of my most favourite mantras!

The 1:1s have been pretty straight forward in terms of coronavirus, it’s been the creativity thats had the most consideration needed. Planning 45 minutes of netball work with just 2 people at a 2m distance is quite a challenge but manageable with some thought! I’ve had a fair few re-bookings though, so to keep thinking of new ideas, keep the participant engaged and for it to beneficial has got me thinking outside the box! That’s no bad thing. I am definitely learning lots!

The small group sessions where social distancing must be adhered to and equipment sharing ‘kept to a minimum’, has been the most challenging! It took me best part of a weekend to plan an hours session that I thought was appropriate, advantageous & can tick all the coronavirus criteria safety boxes. I am normally a perfectionist it’s true, but making sure everything is as right as it can be is even more important during these turbulent times! It’s a heck of a responsibility.

The most important thing of course is that the participants are as safe as possible. There has been an unprecedented demand since I ‘opened’ these opportunities. I did wonder if they would be popular given the potential ‘risk’ involved. I needn’t have worried!

Just from my experience in the last two weeks, I can share that the positive impact emotionally and mentally on these social Netballers far outweighs the physical benefits, as well, I guess, as the risks of picking up Covid 19.

You can literally see the difference from ladies walking in with the weight of the world on their shoulders to walking out, a bit taller with a spring in their step!

There is a real mixture of experiences as well. We’ve had ladies attending who are key-workers:  nurses and Police Officers to those working in domestic violence settings and teachers. There have been a lot of Mums, many open about their struggles with home schooling, toddlers and children with additional needs - sometimes all three. We’ve also had ladies who live alone, either furloughed or working from home and admittedly really struggling with the isolation.

The 55 minutes they spend with their team mates, or 45mins they spend just with me in a 1:1 is seen as a bit of a lifeline for them. They can ‘escape’ from their reality and it visibly, really gives them a lift.

We can only have the 5 participants in a group at the moment, but the banter, cameraderie and spirit comes back almost immediately and something you only really get with team sports and in my opinion, a certain style of it with women! Without getting too deep and meaningful it’s almost spiritual, women can ‘tune in’ to each other so perfectly.

So, as much as I am delivering a service and netball is mine, and my participants passion, it’s not the actual sport or coaching that’s given me an incredible buzz this week. It’s been the beautiful picture walkers by have experienced, the laughter and banter ringing in my ears on my cycle home and the wonderful messages of appreciation and support received.

After all, there is no community like the netball community.

#25 Lets here it for the Non Volunteers!

This week has been National Volunteers Week and I’ve been pretty busy on social media thanking and hi-lighting the incredible efforts netball volunteers go to to make our great sport happen!

I am a true believer that without this fabulous army of volunteers across the globe, netball just would not be in the great place it is currently. Whether it’s someone offering to wash the bibs each week for the local, social team to the Regional Chair dedicating so much time and energy to the governance and administration of netball, as well as everyone in between. You are all worth your weight in gold and ‘thank you’ will never be enough.

It has also got me thinking about the ‘non-volunteers’ and the essential role they play in netball across the globe.

A ‘non-volunteer’, in my eyes anyway, is someone who is paid to do a task or tasks. Volunteers do not get paid.

Until quite recently I think payment in netball was quite controversial. Especially at grass roots.

I remember in my previous role, strongly backing a local league organiser against a plethora of criticism from my colleagues and local netball volunteers, because she made a bit of money for it!  She was (and still is!) doing a fabulous job. It wasn’t by any means paying her mortgage or even a small percentage of her bills but she saw a niche and went for it. We should be celebrating a women’s entrepreneurship. She was clearly doing a much better job than her competitors (corporate and voluntary run) proven by the fact so many teams went from those competitions to hers! It also continues to grow and I say good on her!

I had to really fight her corner to the ‘powers that be’, many of whom didn’t like the evolution of netball or something done differently. I say ‘embrace change, or be left behind!’

I also remember the angst I felt, before I asked for remuneration from the club I had been coaching voluntarily at, for a number of years! It was such a big decision for me to ask and I felt so guilty even contemplating it!

The facts speak for themselves though. For every £20 I earned coaching a 90minute session, I offered (and still do!) free planning & prep of those sessions, review and reflection, out of training communication with players (mostly at times not convenient to me!) as well as more CPD undertaken than a lot of my coaching peers! Coaching at games wasn't (and still isn’t) paid for, so the majority of the work that went in to ‘paid for’ coaching is still voluntary.

My point is this. Yes, we have an amazing army of netball volunteers who should be much more appreciated than I feel they currently are. We also have a spectacular array of ‘non-volunteers’ - those netball stalwarts who do so much for our great game, get less then a little in return, but still go above and beyond to make netball happen!

What is amazing, to me at least, is that these ‘£20 per hour’ coaches, those league organisers who make a little extra for their holiday funds or ambitious umpires who travel the country for expenses, for more court time experience, think they are the luckiest people ever for ‘getting paid’ for doing something they love! It’s the participants they are coaching, the players who compete in their leagues and the athletes these umpires officiate, who are the lucky ones, if you ask me!

I’ve been thinking about this a lot more during lockdown as my ‘little project’ that’s been around for a couple of years, ‘Netball in the Community’ has had more time dedicated to it and as such is just starting to get a bit busier!

Before lockdown I offered some freelance coaching and organised fun  & friendly festivals within the ‘Netball in the Community’ project. What I made didn’t warrant registering as self employed, but I do like to do things properly! Most of the festivals I organise are for Children in Need,  Sport Relief or local good causes anyway!

The netball void in recent months has been vast, but the 1:1 sessions and more recent small group  restrictions being lifted, has seen my coaching engagement go from  0-60 in a matter of hours! I have never been so popular on Facebook!

Even the fact that I’m ‘providing something that local players want and charging for it’  is completely out of my comfort zone!

But, you see, that’s what I think myself and my fellow ‘non volunteers’ have in common: we’re still volunteers at heart and like all volunteers do it for ‘love’ first!

#24 Reaction to Superleague 2020 cancellation

Inevitable you may think, that the Vitality Superleague 2020 has been cancelled because of the impact of Corona virus. Doesn’t make it any more disappointing  though, does it!?!

I’m very grateful I was able to get last minute Storm v Thunder tickets before the lockdown began - even more grateful I made the effort to go! 😉

I was meant to take my eldest to her first Superleague game, London Pulse v Wasps a few weeks ago and it was really sad that we couldn’t go - she was so looking forward to watching Ashleigh Dekker, by far her favourite netballer!

I also had Grand Final tickets - like many, was looking forward to a netball extravaganza, as well as a day out with the netball family away from the stresses and strains of normal family life! (Oh how I long for those stresses and strains now!)

It’s the right decision for netball though and if social media reactions are anything to go by, the netball family are in total agreement. It is my opinion,  and I do have personal experience, that the people who are now at the top of netball in this country have the absolute best interests of our great sport, at the very heart of their decision making.

The decision to make this call must have been excruciating.

I am sure the players themselves will be feeling all kinds of emotions. There will be up and coming players, who’s break out seasons have been cut short, as well as more experienced players who may well have been considering 2020 to be their last.

These athletes cannot continue in limbo though, their physical wellbeing would have been considered at length. Remember netball has evolved, some of them train full time and the physicality and commitment to training is second to none.

There is a reason elite level sport has  ‘cycles’ - allowing athletes to build towards competitions and be at their physical best for those major events.

Social isolation training would have been very challenging on the mind, as well as difficult to modify for a game where working with others is paramount! It’s difficult enough at grass roots!

The actual infrastructure of Superleague teams also varies which would have played its part.

For example I understand there are some franchises that rely on ticket sales to actually put on matches, that would obviously have an impact on playing games without crowds. Venues would have also been a consideration, those within university campus’ may not have anywhere to play, as many unis are closed. Travel would have been another challenge - imagine being in charge of Sirens travel plans during various degrees of lock down guidelines, not to mention the difference between the home nations’ countries!

Just those few considerations (and I am sure there are a lot more - I am by no means an expert!)  are major obstacles in putting on a Superleague Competition as we know it. Our only hope now is a switch to a shorter Autumn competition, mentioned in the official statement. ( https://www.englandnetball.co.uk/vnsl-season-update/ )

My main concern, before the official cancellation this morning, was the impact a stopping of our great game may have on the momentum of netball, as well as wider within women’s sport. Without televised games, social media chatter, newspaper and internet coverage does this mean all the good work done in recent years, will be undone?

The obvious disappointment but positive reaction to the news this morning, the consistent approach by shows such as the Netball Nation podcast and ‘Off the Court’ from Sky, as well as a huge effort from netball fans to keep netball in the social media spotlight, I thankfully, think not!

It is up to the netball family to not only maintain momentum but to build on it. Of course, we are netball, this can and will be done. Anyone betting against us are fools!

#23 May we never take netball for granted again

I’ve been in netball a long time...........officially 30 years, but regular readers / followers of my social media channels will know I was bought up around the courts, so 40 years in October!

I’ve learnt (often the hard way!) that in netball, like in life really, that there are people who ‘do’ and there are people who ‘don’t’.

As society has changed over the years so have, in my opinion, people’s attitudes and we find fewer ‘doers’ wearing many different hats!

An example would be a Head Coach taking on other jobs that others won’t do, such as arranging fixtures, organising match teas, finding officials, buying post protectors.....the list goes on.

There are many other netball examples.

We all know at least one of these people and they do it because they have a love for the game and a passion to see it succeed. Their attitude (as I am often reminded!) is, if they didn’t do it then no one else will.

My argument is, how will we ever know,  if those absolute stalwarts and volunteer legends, don’t release their grip?

I have been that person and I am afraid I am not gracious or generous enough to have continued in an extremely unappreciated role. I am now, of course, very appreciative of those who do, though!

When I gave up so much of my netball volunteering, did the roles and responsibilities I have, get done? Of course they did and continue to do so.

It’s  not without a lot of pain though, I do realise that!

An example of this came this season actually. I do not ‘do’ anywhere near as much as I used to - purposely. However I still seem to be coaching ad hoc, being called on at last minute to coach at matches (although for the first time ever I said ‘no’ this season!), coach mentoring (absolutely my choice as I love it!) as well as ‘persuaded’ to take control of the club’s social media. Not bad for someone who said she was just going to play this season!

I shall be doing even less next season. One of the reasons for this is the continuous lack of appreciation I feel. I put the emphasis on me as I realise it’s more my problem more than anyone else’s.

 I realise there are people who do far more. There are also people who do far less.

To be asked one week ‘please can you do match teas, it’s your turn?’ was like a huge kick in the gut.

The person who asked is bound to be reading this  and is herself a ‘above & beyond volunteer’. So, I will say I bear no malice at all and realise it’s no one persons fault. I just feel that there are many individuals in the team who’s only contribution during the season is one match tea - perhaps they could volunteer to do two, taking the strain of those team mates who already volunteer?

It’s been fairly easy during this lockdown period to be reflective, we have that time, after all. I possibly find it easier than others - I have used reflection a lot in my coaching.

I try not to be bitter. Netball has given me so much and one of my weaknesses is that I can take things very personally.

I think the biggest ‘take away’ for me, from lockdown, is taking things for granted! I would give anything to pick up a ball, call some mates and get to a netball court for a run around. I know, from social media, that many ‘ballers feel the same.

Do we take that very simple event of a netball match, for granted? You bet we do.

I’m hopeful that when we are back to our ‘new normal’ attitudes will again change. We will not forget this time and it will not be in vain.

I intend to volunteer to do two match teas next season as I won’t be doing anything else. Perhaps others may do the same.

I’d like to see a netball community who are more thoughtful and considerate. Players who ‘rock up and play’ (and I am not saying there is anything wrong with that!) more appreciative of the volunteers who contribute so much, to allow them to play.

I’d like a realisation to be held that the more people who contribute to organising netball activity, the less work actually needs to be done.

I think the more people who contribute, even in the smallest ways, after lockdown, the more our great game will grow and we will all see the benefits!

I think that’s something to look forward to. I think hope is positive.

Who’s with me?

#22 Memories

As the lockdown rolls on, the global netball community continues to pull it out of the bag where entertainment, knowledge sharing & keeping in match shape, is concerned! There is so much awesome content out there I am struggling to keep up!

One of the focus’ of late has been a bit of nostalgia, with club Twitter feeds sharing old photos, Facebook pages ablaze with old newspaper cuttings and ‘ballers sharing netball memories left, right & centre! The most heart warming thing about this, for me, is the former players reconnecting.

Anyone for another big spike in participation after this is all over!?!😉

I love a bit of reminiscing. So, I’ve come up with my ten favourite netball memories.

I imagine some will be quite common and others are pretty specific to me! I’ve had to leave a fair few out, including coaching in Australia and Holland, separate experiences at the International Netball Festival Disney, various good memories from different netball jobs I’ve been fortunate enough to have, meeting netball superstars and even the World Cup in  Liverpool! The top 10 must be good! What are your top ten?


💜10.  Being brought up around the netball courts. My mum was a lone parent so where she went, my sister and I generally went too - especially when we were little. This meant practicing 100 passes without dropping the ball, court side at Portsmouth’s home of netball, Bransbury Park. Exploring forests in Odiham and Chichester, whilst she played in the local leagues and making life long friends with other netball kids watching their mums, aunties and sisters playing our great sport!

💜 9. Role models. See above. The amount of feisty, spunky, independent, strong, caring, opinionated, intelligent, ambitious, talented, fit, hardworking, committed, loyal, real women we regularly spent time with was, I realise now, hugely important in my upbringing.

💜 8. Pontins. Those who know, know. I don’t need to say anymore.

💜 7. Alex Barlass Inter counties. I have memories of two of these competitions for completely different reasons! I was treated to new trainers before my first Alex Barlass Championships - I choose some very ‘different’ bright orange Nike’s. No one would blink an eye at them these days but they caused quite a stir back then! Anyway, I got attention for all the wrong reasons when I hurt my knee during the tournament and struggled to get up that hill at Bassett Sports Centre, Southampton on crutches! The second year was memorable for all the right reasons, exceeding all expectations (our own as well as others!) by finishing 5th at the tournament. Never to be repeated! Unprecedented.

💜 6. National Clubs Tournament. I cheered on my Mum and her Meon team mates  at two of these ‘pinnacle’ events, one at Crystal Palace, one at Wembley. I remember painting banners, throwing purple & white tic a tape & my Mum signing autographs! I also remember ALOT of alcohol being consumed by players on the way home!

💜 5. East Hants at Inter counties Bournemouth. For reasons I won’t go into, I found myself in a very  ‘scratch’ County representative side for the end of season inter counties tournament. Without meaning  to be offensive I don’t think the side we put out would have done very well in the ‘2nd team’ competition. We were in the 1st team event though and absolutely hammered. I remember Essex Met were in our group, with the absolutely marvellous Fiona Murtagh, recently retired from England Netball I think, playing - I couldn’t wait to play against them, especially as I was being stuck in at WA & Murtagh played WD! Anyway dreams aren’t always fulfilled - she was ‘rested’ for the match against East Hants and I was pulled off at half time!!! 😂

💜 4. My wedding surprise! Those who know me well, may well describe me as a ‘control freak’, so,  it will come as no surprise my wedding  day was planned within an inch of its life! When I stepped out of The Square Tower in Old Portsmouth, with my new husband, the last thing I expected was to find my netball team outside, in full kit, waiting to give me my ‘Guard of Honour’! It was the only time I cried during the day! I still don’t know how they pulled it off, 10 years later!

💜 3. Writing for The News. For nearly 8 years I had the privilege of writing the  netball page for the local newspaper. It wasn’t the most glamorous of roles and I remember having to battle pretty hard on occasion, to be heard, in the very male dominated profession of sports journalism! However, the good always outweighed the not so good and my favourite memories were writing the more ‘real life’ stories about overcoming challenges, off court success and controversial issues (always a rebel!). I also loved getting to know the person behind the on court player. So many people helped and contributed to that page it’s such a shame it finished recently, but I believe it was a real trailblazer for women’s sport in local news.

💜 2. Meon presentations. Our netball club goes back a long, long time - the 60’s I believe and the club was very fortunate in the 80s & 90s to have legendary duo ‘Karen & Kimmi’ in charge - particularly of the end of season presentations. Nothing was left to chance, everything had been thought of, down to carefully written menus to home made flower displays. I truly believe professional party planners couldn’t have done a better job. So much thought, hard work and personal touches were offered and hugely successful. Those parties were the highlight of my late teens / early twenties! Legendary. How I miss them!

💜 1. Regional League. Since I began Coaching Meon (a club I had been a part of since I was 11 years old) In the  early 2000s I had wanted to get them into the regional league. It was a personal goal but also one that I knew could be realised when we started building a potentially talented young (ish!) team. It finally happened in 2012 after a few near misses that clearly made us stronger. For me it was a personal triumph after a very difficult few months off court and away from home. I actually came back to find the team in a really strong position, but losing our starting GS who had decided a holiday was priority over the play offs! 😬 Cue me, frantically trying to get match fit and putting shots up at every opportunity in the couple of weeks before the big game!

Anyway, the rest they say is history. But the biggest memory for me from that day is achieving that dream with my friends.

 The legacy is Meon still have a team in the regional league. Proud.

#21 Changes to the game?

#Neeks amongst us will know that the recent Bushfire Fundraising event in Australia, which saw the Australian Diamonds take on the ‘best of the rest’ saw the 2 point shot introduced for the first time in a ‘main’, if not competitive, netball match.

There was mixed feelings from those involved as well as supporters. For me, the jury is still out, but I realise I am a traditionalist at heart!

I mean, I’d settle for watching any ‘live’ netball at the moment! Who knows when we’ll get to see any netball or get back on courts ourselves? This ‘lock down’ time has given me the opportunity to reflect on what the future game might look like though!

There has been one lot of substantial rule changes in my lifetime that I can think of, that I remember anyway! It happened a few years ago now: the main change being you don’t have to wait for ‘play’ and there was no whistle when the ball went out of court. The idea was to quicken up the game and I think that has been a success.

I couldn’t imagine watching Superleague Games on TV nowadays and waiting for Gary Burgess or Chris Obin to say ‘play’ before Mikki Austin or Yas Parsons could take a throw in!

With the growth and success of the game, nationally, as well as internationally, there is more frequent talk about rule changes. There is also plenty of debate, on social media in particular, about what may work and what doesn’t or wouldn’t. This has lead to some trial ‘implementations’ like we saw at the Bushfire Relief event.

Suncorp Super Netball, had things been different, were introducing rolling substitutions for the new season. This would have ‘done away’ with the extremely irritating ‘fake injury’ scenarios we’ve been putting up with, so coaches can make tactical changes. It would have been really interesting to see it in practice and how these rolling substitutions would have effected games and also the actual practicalities of how they happen.

It is definitely one of the rules I would change about our great game. I get very frustrated when opposition ‘calls time’ for an injury to make a change when there is just no injury. That’s not to say we haven’t used the rule to our advantage of course, it just seems so bloody dishonest and indeed, not ‘in keeping’ with our great game!

I am, by nature, rather cautious when talk is of ‘making changes’ to netball. I am a traditionalist but I do realise that can be a good and bad thing! More than that though I just don’t like change for change sake. If a rule is genuinely effecting the game and needs to be changed then so be it, but change just for the sake of it? No thanks.

We are all experiencing a lot of change during this Corona Virus pandemic - it’s something we’ve all had to get used to and completely out of our control. Obviously these changes are at a different end of the spectrum to any netball changes that may or may not be being considered. The changes we are implementing for our own safety are completely different, but we still take ownership of them, they are for our own well being.

I think if major rule changes are to be considered they must take all views and opinions into play (pardon the pun!) and that’s everyone involved: players, coaches, umpires and yes, even, fans!

There are areas of the game where I would welcome rule changes to netball. For example professional Players are stronger and fitter than ever before. (Because they are professional!)

I see that that is impacting on our game, it is far more physical. (A debate for another day maybe!)  If there were rule changes that can limit injuries, for example, I think that would be a positive change. That may well be my 3 years of ACL rehab talking though!!!

Change is one of the considerations netball has to be very careful of when attracting and negotiating with sponsors and commercial partners. Money talks after all.

Would netball consider a drastic change to the game, for example: no centre passes, back lines to be taken after each goal. If, Nike said they’d double their investment? (I’ve no idea why Nike would want to do away with Centre passes, but hopefully you get my drift!)

To a certain extent this already happening ‘down under’. Nissan Net Points anyone!?!

I was a huge football fan when I was a kid - followed it almost religiously. But it’s my opinion that the vast, bewildering and often immoral amounts of money involved in buying players, paying wages and even the price of replica kit, has completely ruined the sport.

I can’t see netball following suit but I would hate us to even contemplate following a similar path. We could be so much more.

As well as debating changes to the ‘traditional’ game. We’ve also seen the evolution of ‘Fast Fives’ and other forms of netball, like the Red Bull switch up.

I am much more comfortable with these different variations and events. There’s room for changes, sponsorship and income generation.

Everyone knows where they stand with these different forms - Fast Fives is a great example: the rules are easy to follow (even if the format is not, in the UK competition!), the game is entertainment based and the audiences expectations are met. It ticks all boxes. It’s also a separate product to our ‘traditional’ game and is treated as such, where,  I think the success lies!

To conclude, netball isn’t broken, so there is nothing to fix!

It’s a great product in its own right. Leave it alone and let the game do the talking.

Peddle the other forms of the game to the sponsors who want changes and profitable sponsorship deals.