Photo courtesy of Rance Costa on Flickr.com

This week’s post is going to be fairly short and sweet. I just wanted to share a couple of resources that I have come across recently. They’re both podcasts that I’ve subscribed to and can be found on the Quick & Dirty Tips website and via their Facebook pages. The 1st one is Get Fit Guy and the 2nd is called Nutrition Diva. They have lots of useful tips on working out at home, what to eat before and after a workout, how to build muscle and nutrition for sporty kids to name but a few. You can get the same info via the Quick & Dirty Tips website or from their Facebook pages but it’s better to download the podcasts to an iPod or other MP3 player and then you can listen to them when it suits you best, e.g. on your commute to work or when doing something boring like housework. They have both definitely inspired me to change some of my bad habits.

So, please check them out and let me know what you think.  Are there any resources for netballers you’d like to recommend?

Photo courtesy of Lochnagarth via www.flickr.com

A few days ago Netball Australia’s CEO, Kate Palmer, argued that female athletes need to stop blaming the media for lack of coverage of female sports and look to their sport’s governing body to redress the problem. Her comments follow an article by Melissa Barbieri, captain of the Australian Women’s soccer team (aka the Matildas), complaining about hypocrisy in the media. I agree that each sport is responsible for building its own brand and making itself newsworthy. But what happens when you do that, as I believe netball has done, and your sport is still ignored by the media? As I’ve argued before netball seems invisible to mainstream media.

As Kate Palmer points out the ANZ Championship is a great product; it’s the best netball tournament in the world (or in their words the hottest game in town). But, last Saturday, the day before the Grand Final in Adelaide, which reportedly sold out in 12 minutes (we can but dream of such things in the UK), coverage of the match in Adelaide’s biggest newspaper was bumped off the front page for a story about the resignation of an AFL coach. Needless to say, Aussie Rules footie is important in Australia but I bet that Australian netball fans are just as passionate about netball and surely on this occasion the netball story should have been the lead story.

It might not be the media’s job to give all sports equal coverage but wouldn’t you expect all mainstream sports to be given coverage proportionate to its fan base and level of participation? Isn’t it the media’s job to attempt to cover the sports that are of interest to its readers/viewers/listeners. Netball has done a lot in recent years to modernise (some would say “sex up”) its image and make itself seem more attractive. But you can only go so far down that path before you stop focusing on the beauty of the game and the great skill of the athletes and obsess too much about image (check out the American Lingerie Football League for a nightmare version of the future for female sports). Netballers, and no doubt the Matildas and other female athletes want more recognition and for their sport to be taken seriously. Female athletes also provide good role models for young girls who need more encouragement to participate in sport and to continue to play sport past their teenage years.

The truth is, there is a bias towards male-dominated sports (how else do you explain the intense coverage of games like snooker and darts in the UK) and there are plenty of articles and  research that argue the same point. The Matildas are dedicated athletes and so far their achievements outstrip those of their male counterparts. Yes, I know it’s a lot harder for the Socceroos to shine on the world stage of men’s soccer. But Palmer also says there’s more interest in the Socceroos than the Matildas because the men are high profile, international athletes. I imagine that soccer is pretty low down the pecking order in Australia as it has to compete with rugby union, rugby league, AFL and cricket. Considering their respective achievements to date, why do the Socceroos have a high profile but the Matildas barely get a mention until they win a major tournament?

It would be interesting to see what coverage is given to the upcoming Test Series in Australia when the Australian Netball Diamonds take on Jamaica and the Silver Ferns. Top class netball involving 3 of the 4 highest ranking teams in the world.

If netball was a male-dominated sport it would get significantly media coverage. No question. I guess then my question is, what more does netball need to do to get the attention it deserves?

Photo courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/whyohgee/

• always put the team first
• try to motivate others
• accept responsibility for her actions
• try to stay positive

• put her needs above everyone else’s
• rarely accept or apologise for her mistakes
• often criticise their team mates even players with more skill than they have
• usually ignore tactical advice from more experienced players or coaches

Photo courtesy of Keith Williamson via Flickr.com

With so many summer leagues and tournaments to play in and netball tours to go on, for many of us it’s possible to play netball virtually all year round with hardly any break at all. This may suit you, especially if you’re still young, springy, nothing hurts yet and you don’t know any better.

The ANZ Championship is tough and the points system is pretty unforgiving; just 2 points are awarded for a win and that’s it, unlike in some leagues where losing teams can pick up a bonus point for being within touching distance of their opponents. Also, a match cannot end in a draw; you either win or lose in this competition. In the event of a draw after full time, games go to extra time and if necessary extended extra time to decide the winner. In extended extra time, play continues uninterrupted until one team has a two-goal advantage – a bit like a fifth set tie-break in tennis. Basically, you don’t get any marks for effort unless you win the game as well. But the points table can’t tell you how heart-breakingly close a team may have come to winning before being overcome by their opposition in the dying minutes.

Currently leading the table are the Sydney Swifts who have so far beaten all-comers including defending champions, the Melbourne Vixens. Holding on to second place and flying the flag for New Zealand in the top half of the table are Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic, still featuring a handful of Silver Ferns despite the loss of Maria Tutaia and Joline Henry. Sadly, for Kiwi fans, you have to go a long way down the table before you come across another New Zealand team. Vixens are in third place but have recently suffered a shock defeat by West Coast Fever, their third loss in a row.

The LG Mystics, Southern Steel, Adelaide Thunderbirds and Queensland Firebirds all have 8 points but both Australian teams have a game in hand. The Steel will be sitting out the next round and the Mystics are up against the Pulse, a game no-one really expects them to lose. The Australians, however, both have tough matches in the next round. The Thunderbirds are up against the Vixens who will still be smarting after their recent losses and keen to get back to their usual winning ways and the Firebirds really will need to be on fire when they meet the table-topping Swifts next Monday. Propping up the bottom of the table are West Coast Fever, Mercury Energy Tactix and Haier Pulse.

There are 6 rounds left before the finals so plenty of points up for grabs. Whilst it must be virtually impossible for any of the bottom three teams to make the top four, they still have the capacity to inflict damage on the title hopes of many of the teams above them. Also, as the competition wears on and the injury toll rises, especially among the star players (Vixens’ Julie Corletto and Magic’s Peta Scholz are the latest casualties), there may be more upsets in store so no-one can take anything for granted. The semi-finals start on the 27^th June and the Grand Final is scheduled for 11^th July.

Unfortunately, the games are only televised in Australia and New Zealand (if anyone knows a way to see them in the UK or elsewhere, please share!) and by all accounts along with the undoubted skill and flair on display there have been some very bruising encounters along the way. You can stay up to date with some of the results via Netball Match’s Facebook page or via the Facebook pages of ANZ Netball, Netball New Zealand, the Australian Diamonds and the Northern Mystics. Some teams and players send updates via Twitter plus there are match results and other snippets of information on the ANZ Championship’s own Twitter page. Not quite the same as going to any of the games but better than nothing.

Will this be the year that a New Zealand team lifts the trophy or will the Australians’ dominance of the competition continue?

The winter weather disrupted the fixtures at the start of the year and thanks to an Icelandic volcano with an unpronounceable name some of the fixtures at the tail end of the season have been affected too. But, how has each team fared so far?

Surrey Storm

Living up to their new name, the Superleague’s newest franchise has had a storming season only losing twice in 16 games. They suffered defeat at the hands of TeamBath and Northern Thunder but only since dynamic defensive due Geva Mentor and Sonia Mkoloma departed for their spell in the ANZ Championship. They top the league with 28 points.

TeamBath

It would have been a major shock if TeamBath hadn’t made it to the final four with Pamela Cookey still an inspiration to her team mates. Their confidence will have been boosted further by their recent defeat of table-topping Surrey Storm. If, as expected, TeamBath win their last match against Glasgow Wildcats, they will also have 28 points but Storm’s superior goal difference will ensure they win the league.

Hertfordshire Mavericks

Mavericks suffered some early defeats but have shown great resilience to keep themselves in contention throughout the season. Having to field an under strength team, they endured a heavy loss in their last league game against Northern Thunder which left Mavericks firmly in fourth place. They lost five games and finished with 22 points. They now have to travel north to face Thunder again in the play offs.

Northern Thunder

Thunder have gone from strength to strength this season and shooter Karen Greig was spot on at the start of their campaign when she said the future looked bright for her side. They lost three games and bagged 26 points. They now have the added boost of a home advantage in their play off against Mavericks.

So how do the play offs work? Like the ANZ Championship there are three play off matches, effectively three semi-finals which sounds odd when you think about it.

Play off 1 is between the top two teams, Surrey Storm and TeamBath. Storm will host this game as they’ve finished top of the league. The winner of this match goes straight into the Grand Final at Nottingham Trent Arena on Saturday, 15th May.

Play off 2 is between the 3rd & 4th placed teams with home advantage going to the team in 3rd place. Winning this game brings you a step closer to the final but you still have to overcome the loser of play off 1. This is play off 3 and the winner makes it through to the grand final.

Have you been following the Superleague and who do you fancy to take the title this year?

The National Excel Pathway consists of National Talent programmes for U17 and U19 players that lead into Excel Plus, the U21 and National Squad programmes.England Netball has nine Regional divisions, each one implementing the Excel Pathway across its own distinct region of the country and headed by a full-time Regional Manager and support staff. The aim is to develop netball across England in many ways, such as by:

• increasing participation in netball
• talent identification and development
• helping clubs to develop and grow
• educating the netball community with coaching and umpiring courses
• forging links between communities, schools and clubs
• running competitions and leagues that feed into the new Regional and National structure

This week we talk to Sonia Robinson, Regional Development Officer for the London & South East Region, about her role within England Netball’s Excel Pathway programme.

What does being a Regional Development Officer involve?
I am the first point of contact for the region and will hopefully be able to answer the varied queries that come through by e-mail or telephone and/or direct people to the most appropriate person.  I plan and co-ordinate UK Coaching Certificate courses, which includes the development of tutors and assessors.  Assisting clubs in achieving Clubmark is a main part of the role, which I do with County Development Officers. I also maintain and update the regional website, using the services of a web company. All regional competitions and events are within my remit, and I work closely with the Competition Group to ensure they are successful, especially the Regional League, which is the highest level of competition in the region.  This is just a taster, as my role is wide and varied  – from organisation of High 5 and Youth Umpire Award Orientation workshops to planning the London Mini Games.  My counterparts in the 8 other regions do some of the same things, but it does depend on how the region operates as to the exact role of a Regional Co-ordinator.  (My job title was changed to Regional Co-ordinator in July 2009, as it was felt that this description fits the role more appropriately).

How successful have the Regional Leagues been since their inception in 2006?
The Regional League has been extremely successful since it started in 2006/2007.  A number of teams have gone from strength to strength in the Premier League as a result of their participation and success at regional level.  The region had a Regional Clubs Forum last year to obtain clubs views and opinions about the league, and one major decision  for 2009/10 was to play indoors (home and away), rather than at central venues.  A review will be carried out at the end of the season to gauge how successful this has been, but indications so far are good.

Tell us more about the Satellite & County Academies and how they lead into elite netball.
Satellite & County Academies are not part of my Regional Co-ordinator role, as  I administer the Satellite Academies as a volunteer for  Middlesex Netball.  Satellite Academy is the first rung on the Excel pathway ladder, County Academy being the second step.  The Excel pathway leads all the way up to playing for England at elite level.  A number of successful elite athletes from the Middlesex area started in Satellite or County Academy, including  Kadeen Corbin, Rachel Mulloy and Danielle McFarlane,  since I have been administrator.

How difficult is it to find players to fill the academies?
It is not difficult at all.  We are looking for potentially talented players, not just numbers, to attend the academies.

What about funding for the academies – is it all from England Netball or does each region have to partially fund the programme?
Academies should be self-funding.  Athletes pay to attend trials and the academies.  Most schools have Gifted & Talented funds to subsidise any athletes who may have difficulty paying. The Middlesex Academies are heavily subsidised by Middlesex County Netball Association, but I don’t know how other counties or regions operate their academies.  Neither the region nor England Netball provide funding for any of the academies within the region.

What do you enjoy most about your job and what is the most difficult part?
I enjoy the contact with volunteers and seeing people participating in an activity.  I can’t really think of any difficult parts.

Do you think there has been any increase in participation in netball since England Netball launched its 10-1-1 campaign?
Definitely, but I’m not sure of the exact figures. Affiliation figures have gone up from just over 60,000 to approximately 70,000 as at the end of August 2009, when they were last measured.

What else can be done to raise the profile of netball at grass roots level?
We have a network of Development Officers in each county who do a lot of work at grass roots levels.  If people don’t know who their County Development Officer is, then they should access the regional website: www.londonandsoutheastnetball.co.uk

Netball Match: Thanks Sonia for taking the time to do this interview. If you’d like to ask Sonia a question, please post a comment below.

If you want to know about netball in your region, whether it’s about getting back to netball, coaching or umpiring, contact your Regional unit for more information. What do you think of netball in your region? If you’ve been through any part of a regional talent development programme, what did you think?

Now in its 3^rd season, the ANZ Championships is often dubbed the best netball tournament in the world; a claim that’s hard to dispute when the competition is comprised of 10 teams from Australia and New Zealand – the world’s top two netballing nations for quite some time now. Apart from a smattering of big name imports from England & Jamaica the players are almost exclusively Aussies & Kiwis.

In the Aussie corner, we have the following franchises:

Adelaide Thunderbirds

Melbourne Vixens (2009 winners)

NSW Swifts (2008 winners)

Queensland Firebirds

West Coast Fever

Across the Tasman representing NZ we have:

Haier Pulse (formerly Central Pulse)

LG Northern Mystics

Mercury Energy Tactix (formerly Canterbury Tactix)

Southern Steel

Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic

In the off-season there have been a number of high profile defections and signings, notably from the Magic camp which is not quite so laden with Silver Ferns as it was last season. So far the Australian teams have been dominating the competition with only Magic and Steel looking capable of breaking the Australians’ stranglehold. Last year both these Kiwi teams made it to the semi-finals and Magic were losing finalists in 2008.

However not everyone is happy with the set up. Diamonds coach Norma Plummer feels that some of the Kiwi outfits aren’t really cutting it and would like to see 6 Australian teams and 4 NZ teams. According to Plummer the current arrangements are hindering the progress of her up and coming players. But does she have a point? Perhaps, the Australian players feel they know all they need to know about their trans-Tasman rivals and beating them all regularly is becoming rather routine. Plummer would even like to see a top team from both England and Jamaica competing to give the championship a more international flavour along the lines of rugby union’s Super 14 competition.

Playing in the ANZ Championships is a huge boost for all the foreign imports and furthers the development of netball in their countries with the experiences they will gain. There’s no doubt that playing against the best in the world will raise your game; just look at how England defenders Sonia Mkoloma (NSW Swifts) and Geva Mentor (Thunderbirds) have developed into one of the world’s most formidable defensive pairings. Playing for an ANZ team will also do no harm to the international careers of Jamaicans Romelda Aiken (Firebirds) and Althea Byfield (Mystics). For all the players competing it’s a chance to impress their respective national coaches as selection for national squads for the Commonwealth Games will take place shortly after the tournament.

Sky Sports NZ and Network Ten in Australia will be broadcasting matches from the competition. The first match will see the Thunderbirds travel to Auckland to take on the Mystics.

Which ANZ team do you support and why? Will a NZ team get their hands on the big trophy this year?

In less than a week the INA England squad will be jetting off to South Africa for the Indoor Netball Tri-Nations tournament. The event will be held in Sun City from 12-21 March 2010 and England will enter 4 teams in the competition: Ladies, Mixed, Men and Under 21.

There are two versions of the sport: a 7-a side version, the rules of which are not too dissimilar from regular netball, and a 6-a-side version which is still netball, but not as we know it. Here to explain the rules and talk Oz v England is England INA squad member, Sarah Rees.

1.       How did you get involved with netball and how long have you been playing?

I didn’t start netball until much later in life, in fact when I was 20 at university someone asked me to fill in for their mixed team, so I did, and I loved it, so after a couple of years I tried out for state league and made it into Altona State League. Altona recently merged with another state league team VU flames, to become VU Western Lightning – http://vuwesternlightning.vnl.com.au/ . My incredibly awesome coach Joy Grubb – who taught me everything I know, is still coaching them now. She reminds me a little of my Premier League coach Pat Watson, though Joy’s probably a bit scarier.

2.       How does indoor netball differ from regular netball?

7 a side indoor netball is basically the same as regular netball, except the court is a bit smaller, and you have nets around the court, the ball can come off the net in certain situations and play on, though the player can’t use the net to their advantage. There’s some great explanations on the INA website about the rules http://www.ina-england.co.uk. 6 a side matches, however, are completely different, the court is divided into halves, you have two defence, two centres, and two attack, and the centres can shoot from outside the circle for two goals. It has certainly taken me a while to adapt to this style of play, as the tactical side of things is completely different from a defence point of view, and in fact, at training a couple of weeks ago I went into playing attack… though not for my shooting skills that’s for sure!

3.       You’ve had to fund the tour to South Africa yourselves, how difficult has that been and what sort of fundraisers have been organised?

Funding ourselves has been a major strain on the whole team, and we’ve worked incredibly hard to try and cover our expenses. We’ve organised two fundraising tournaments in Canary Wharf at Play On sports that were a fantastic success, and we cant’ thank the people that turned up and played enough for their support. In addition to this we held a quiz night recently at Temple Walkabout that was also a huge success, and it’s fair to say that none of this would have happened without the awesome team that I’m privileged to be part of, they’re a great bunch of people and I can’t wait to go away on tour with them all! Finally in terms of sponsorship I personally have been very lucky in that the children and staff at my school held a casual clothes day fundraiser last Friday to help me raise money for my tour, my school has been immensely supportive – and proud!- of my efforts in representing England at the INA tournament.

4.       You also play Premier League netball for New Cambell, so how do you combine that with working full time, playing indoor netball and training for the INA World Champs?

This has been tricky at times as I haven’t wanted to see my INA commitments clash with my Premier League training or matches, and I’ve been pretty lucky with training schedules that haven’t really clashed, and I’ll only miss one prem game while I’m away on tour. I think the hardest thing is dragging yourself to training when you’ve worked a really long day, it’s hard to motivate when you just want to get home and chill on the sofa, but you just have to keep remembering the end goal. It also helps that I’m not someone who can stand to be bored, I have to be doing something!

5.       Back home in your native Australia you’ve played at State level, what was it like playing against the likes of Australian Diamond Sharelle McMahon?

I find it’s the same in Australia or the UK when you’re playing ‘big name’ players, some of the team tend to get themselves worked up about who they’re playing or what they’ll do, I prefer just to go out on court each time as a new experience and forget the reputation of the player I’m against, each match is a new opportunity, you don’t know what they’ll be like on the day so there’s no point worrying about it, you just get out there and do your job. Having said that, Sharelle is pretty amazing though hey! I think we missed her this series in the ‘regular’ netball. She’s an incredibly talented netballer, and yet really down to earth, I remember coaching my primary school team in Aus, and she came out one day to help us at training and give us some tips on our way to the national champs, she’s not only an awesome player, but a lovely person, and it helps to keep that in mind when you come up against opposition players with big reputations – they’re just people too!

6.       How do you find playing netball in the UK compared with playing in Australia?

I find that netball in the UK is just getting better and better. Unfortunately it just doesn’t get the same coverage media wise as it does in Aus and NZ, but I think now having UK players going over to play in the Trans Tasman series will benefit everyone in terms of the development of our sport. There just is no getting around the fact that the English media do not want to celebrate netball. It’s not all about football people!

7.       Do you have any aspirations to play for a Superleague team?

I did try out for Mavericks a couple of years back with my Cambell Prem team mates Holly, Gemma and Clare. I played terribly during the try outs which obviously led to me not getting into the squad, but in hindsight it probably was for the best, with work commitments I don’t think I could’ve committed to what would have been required of me, so maybe it was a blessing in disguise. Also, it was after that I began filling in for a friend’s indoor netball team, so it certainly turned out for the best for me!

8.       How did you rate England’s performances against Australia in the recent Test Series?

Ohhh that’s a hard one, my loyalties took some testing here! I was so pleased for England playing so well, though I must admit I was on the edge of my seat that Tuesday night at the O2, I thought the Aussies were really in trouble, only to pull it back right at the last minute. I guess that’s something to keep in mind as we head to South Africa, you can’t let down your guard for a minute. I did think England did really well, and are certainly the team to watch. It’s no longer just the Aussies and Kiwis dominating, which I think is a great thing for our sport.

Netball Match: Thanks Sarah for taking the time to do this interview

If you’d like to send any messages of support to the England INA team, you can send them either via the INA website or the Netball Match Facebook page. Depending on an internet connection Sarah will try to blog about the tour and send back some pictures.

Have you ever played indoor netball and what did you think of it?

So what is Twitter? Twitter describes itself as “a real-time information network powered by people all around the world that lets you share and discover what’s happening now”. But how can it be useful to netballers?

You can use Twitter to quickly share information with people interested in what you have to say. UK Superleague teams Surrey Storm and Northern Thunder are both using Twitter to share information with their fans. During their recent Superleague matches they’ve been sending regular messages with match commentary and the latest scores. It’s not quite the same as watching the games or listening to live commentary on the radio but it’s better than nothing.

Some international netballers use Twitter too, with Australian Diamond Susan Pratley being the most active user so far. Judging by her recent comments she was very excited about the Diamonds tour to the UK but needed to go shopping for some warm clothes. The Diamonds were planning to send regular tweets throughout their current UK tour but haven’t sent many, however, The Netball Pod has been tweeting throughout each Test match and I was tweeting furiously during the last Test at the O2. Hopefully, more teams and players will follow the lead of those mentioned above. It would be useful if all Superleague and ANZ teams did the same during their games to provide everyone, not just local fans, with up to the minute information on each game. Obviously, time differences between countries will be an issue, but you get the idea.

To use Twitter, just sign up for a free account, then answer the question, “What’s happening?”  Your answer to that question is like a status update in Facebook, or what Twitter users call a “tweet.” Messages are limited to 140 characters – think of it like sending an online text message about what you’re doing or thinking about right now.

Take a look at Twitter’s public timeline – all the tweets being sent by the millions of other Twitter users. What you’ll see is mainly dross; complete strangers talking about what they had for breakfast and not in the least bit interesting. To really get any benefit from Twitter you need to start ‘following’ people which means their tweets show up on your personal timeline (your home page). First of all follow a few netballers and their teams and read what they tweet about. But don’t just follow netballers. Search Twitter for other topics that you’re interested in and follow people who write interesting and informative things on that topic. You can also follow your favourite celebrities, if you really must. Just don’t expect Oprah or Britney Spears to do the same because you are one of millions of followers for them. Soon you may even have people following you to read what you have to say (but don’t feel you have to follow someone just because they’re following you.)

If this all sounds too much like hard work, you can link your Facebook and Twitter accounts so your status updates from Facebook are automatically sent to Twitter and vice versa, which takes the hassle out of posting status updates on both sites. There are lots of How-To guides out there too which have plenty of useful information on getting started with Twitter.

If you decide to give Twitter a try or you’re already using it, then share your Twitter name on the discussion board of the Netball Match Facebook page and connect more easily with other netball fans around the world. You can follow me on Twitter here.

Like with anything related to the internet, be careful. Don’t click on links promising pictures of naked celebrities as that’s just spam or someone phishing to try and find out your Twitter password.

Have you used Twitter and if so do you find it useful? Do you have any suggestions on how it can be used to help netball reach a wider audience?