Once upon a time it was a sport confined to PE classes, but today increased participation in netball has proven that the game is no longer just the domain of schoolgirls. With record numbers of women playing the game competitively and many more people watching from home than ever before, netball is enjoying a huge surge in popularity. With simple rules, a great capacity for increasing fitness and strength and a way to maintain good mental health, netball isn’t just for schoolgirls.
Think about a school that segregated its subjects by gender. A school that didn’t let the girls study chemistry or algebra and the one way to go through those subjects was to look for private tuition outside of school hours at their personal expense. There would, actually, be anger. Gender-divided sport is, generally, lawful – although sports ruling bodies enhancing champion mixed sports sessions, with the FA increasing the age of mixed football to 18. And there are numerous correct arguments as to why both mixed and divided sport are effective, at various ages, and in various contexts.
The Popular Game
There’s no denying that netball is enjoying the limelight, with numbers increasing in terms of both participation and spectating. In fact, in 2019, the number of people in the UK playing netball rose 16.4%. An estimated 180,000 women in the UK take part in regular league games, with a huge number more simply playing in a recreational capacity. When it comes to watching the sport, netball is the sole female-only sport that has weekly Sky Sports coverage. This includes the screening of all major international events.
Our senior players is aware of this only very well, but it’s good to see the News discussing positively our sport, specifically chasing up an n article in The Guardian previous this week in which the journalist herself a daily player, considered the game ‘not cool’. Her comments were soon grabbed hold of upon on social media with few of the country’s top players presenting their support and pleasure in the game with the hashtag “NetballOnTheRise”.
The Benefits of Netball
Playing netball can burn up to 450 calories an hour, with more calories burned by the Centre, Wing Attack and Wing Defence positions. It also helps build lean muscle and calls for strength in the upper and lower body. As a team sport, netball offers a great opportunity for socialising as well as the feel-good factor of being in a team. In Australia, where netball participation is particularly high, a recent study found that women who play netball on a regular basis have better mental health and higher life satisfaction than those who simply work out at the gym.
How to Set Up a Team Finding a team to join is easy, but setting one up takes a little more work. You’ll need to think about kits and a venue, and you may even want to do Level 1 in Netball Coaching. Plan your training sessions by researching a different netball drill video each week. You can use a netball drill video to improve both general fitness and specific skills such as throwing, catching, defending and scoring. The Netball England page has loads of advice on either finding or setting up a team.
Why not give it go? Netball is an apt way to get healthy and fit and make new friends. Netball is the fastest-developing and most famous team sport for women IN THE WORLD! If only we could get the government departments to drive it through.