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When did the culture of netball change and why!
Netball began to spread well beyond the popular State Netball Association in the early 1990's. When a private owner from an action indoor cricket centre tried to fill his indoor cricket courts and struggled, his girlfriend suggested to fill it with netball games. She could bring some girlfriends and their boyfriends, and start up a competition. MIXED netball began. This way the guys and girls could play both cricket and netball together, then have a drink at the bar. Hence the SOCIAL title began and was used on a regular basis.
Did these people know the netball game and rules? No
Did they have qualified umpires on the games? No
How did they play the structure of the game? They didn't
Did players know about this part? Men didn't but women did
How did they know what rules to play? They made half of them up and from memory only.
Was is safe? Definitely not. They had a high accident and injury rate along with many violent incidents continously amongst arguing players in a confined space.
Did they have umpires that were off the court like usual?
No they could only be on the court and inevitably hinder the players during a game.
Did they have two umpires? No normally one to cut costs of employment
Did it affect the game much? Absolutely and beyond the already poor structure
How did players experience the game? With great confusion most of the time.
So what was enjoyable about it at the time? It had a bar and could promote a social environment where the opposite sex could intergrate together and this was actually the core culture that began to grow.
Is it better nearly 18 years later? Well that depends on where you play.
Has anything improved across the years in mixed netball? Absolutely. Not only have males, who did not get an opportunity to learn the game in primary and secondary schools like females, manage to learn to take direction and gain a real understanding to the game, the younger male generations have actually had the opportunity to play the game at both primary and secondary levels. The result of this is that both males and females in the younger generations, really have a more advance understanding and abilites of experience to the game. It is really an exciting experience for the sport and the capabilities of an athletic male netball player does alter the level of competition and visual entertainment to the game.
Do all competitions that run mixed social netball deliver the same experience? No
Why? Because the management approaches are unique to each competition and their qualifications in the sport. Most people that run these competitions are NOT qualified in the sport. This area is crucial to the safety and education of clients, as netball in a complex and highly intelligent sport performed under speed.
Why does Melbourne Netball regard themselves as the specialists in social netball?
From the company director, administration team, staff co-ordinators, umpire developers and trainers, umpires and trainee umpires, we are all either qualified in the sport or becoming qualified. We are here to deliver the netball sport CORRECTLY to players. Additionally, we implement further rulings that override the AANA rule book with our own company BiLaws, while upholding this culture for our clients social safety and enjoyment. We extend ourselves to educate all players. We want YOU to experience great netball in safety while your social relationships grow in a healthy and happy environment.
Melbourne Netball's motto in an ettiquette sport :