Beyond the Court
- Jodi Cassar
- Oct 18
- 4 min read
Hunter and Central Coast Regional Meeting
The Hunter and Central Coast Regional Meeting was held 16 October, led by Netball NSW Hunter and Central Coast Regional Coordinator Kirsten Clarke, this is a great way for Association Executives from across our region to come together and reflect on the season gone, and consider the season ahead.
Beyond the Court - Hunter and Central Coast Region
On Saturday 18 October Associations and Clubs came together to share practical examples on how to improve the netball experience for all of our members - here are just a few you can consider in your netball community.
Experience is at the Heart of Everything
We know that people play netball to enable:
a sense of belonging
to improve health and wellbeing
fun
positive culture
a good balance between competition and fun
recognition and support
a positive coaching experience for athletes
We also know the reasons people don't return to netball is often the result of 3 key areas:
Lack of inclusion - people don't feel welcome or included
Negative Coaching - people have had a bad experience with a coach
Loss of enjoyment - netball no longer was fun
The good news is that as an Association, Clubs and Teams we are all able to control the experience that our members have. So, it is everyone's responsibility to ensure that we collectively create a fun, inclusive and safe place for people to enjoy the game of netball.
Belonging
Not feeling welcome or included is a common reason players leave netball, but have you considered:
How do you make new and returning members feel welcomed and valued?
Think about your newsletters, emails and activities - are they culturally inclusive and accessible to all?
When the season starts take time to say 'hi' to new members and connect with them.
Consider hosting a fun season opener for players, parents, coaches and managers to meet each other.
Here are some useful links to support a sense of belonging with your volunteers:
Health and Wellbeing
Netball provides lots of opportunities to improve a player's health and wellbeing, including confidence and self-awareness.
The Netty Way Coaching Guide is a great way to learn how to do this The Netty Way - Netball NSW
Talking about health habits in preparation for netball is a great way to consider how sleep, food, drink and the impacts of social media can impact how you play or train netball.
You can find more useful information here: FFYS_Netball.pdf
Starting training with a moment of mindfulness, here is 18 great tips to assist you further 18 Mindfulness Games, Worksheets and Activities for Kids
Support and training on mental health for coaches, umpires and committee members is key, there are a number of FREE workshops, for netball clubs, Associations in NSW and you can register here: Tackle Your Feelings – Free mental health training for football netball clubs – Sport Central
Fun
Fun and enjoyment is the number one reason people play netball. This is also the number on reason that people leave netball - and you are the controller of Fun ! So, let's get back to making netball fun for all.
Check in on your coaches to make sure that every session has an element of fun, and this is important regardless the level from NetSetGo to Suncorp Super Netball there needs to be fun.
Fun can be planned at the Association, Club or team level:
coaches may encourage players to arrive early to catch up and connect before training starts, include non-netball warm ups, and warm down games.
encourage themed training nights - games
create opportunities to connect outside of the netball game as a team, club or Association
engage with teenagers through positive TikTok challenges
Positive Culture
If you haven't already done so create your club or teams values, engage everyone in the creation of these and work out how you will act by them.
Communicate the values regularly in your engagements with players and their families and recognise those who display these in action.
Encourage new ideas and be open to trying new ways of working.
Create positive sideline culture within your club or team, the behaviour you walk past is the behaviour you tolerate.
Balance between competition and fun
How can you create the balance?
do you need to strictly grade all games ? Can you create some divisions that are just social?
find the win in every loss, at every opportunity - encourage every coach to plan for this, Measure success by other ways not just the scoreboard.
create memories away from the court, ask players to reflect on these.
enjoy social twilight competitions about creating fun competitions where people are playing with their friends.
Recognition and Support
Are you rewarding positive behaviour and effort by your members? Not just on the court but off the court?
This can be as simple as having a player or team of the week that has upheld the Association, Club or team values.
Create appreciation posts that highlight your Club or teams umpires, coaches and volunteers.
Celebrate the success at all levels and use your social media and newsletters to tell these stories.
Introduce weekly team awards not only for players but also recongising your coaches, and umpires or spectator of the week.
Coaching
Ensure all coaches have access to the Netty Way and have completed the Foundation Coaching accreditation.
Start a coach mentoring program where senior coaches support younger coaches, and have regular checkins with all your coaches.
Recognise coaches that coach the "Netty Way" beyond winning as a team and assist coaches in how to give good feedback.
Encourage all coaches to be accredited in your Club and encourage and support their continued learning and development pathways.
In other news
Port Stephens Netball Association is coming together this Monday 20 October for round 1 of our 8 week Spring Competition. A huge thank you to everyone who has registered we are looking forward to a great competition that is social and fun.
Don't forget the canteen will be trialling cashless during this competition too.
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