News
Netball – sport in the spotlight
08 November 2016Netball at Penryn College: real success at all levels!
Girls’ netball is a hugely popular sport at Penryn College. Here we talk to PE teacher and team coach, Mrs Ange Walker, about the sport she loves.
Why do you think more girls are getting into netball?
Our numbers are definitely up, especially amongst year 9s and 10s. I think girls love the opportunity to develop skills but love the friendly nature of the competition during match play. I also think they have increased confidence from playing and they love the teamwork netball demands. It’s not always about winning for the girls – they’ll turn up, have a few games and shed the stress of a school day with some fun, intense exercise. There are lots of opportunities in school to play and there are some great local clubs that offer netball at all levels. It’s a sport you can carry on playing into adulthood – it keeps you fit and keeps you in touch with friends.
How do you encourage younger girls to try netball?
We have a Primary Netball League playing ‘Hi 5’ Netball. It’s very popular – 11 teams have entered the league this year. Our Year 11 student netball coaches and girls from other years do an excellent job of encouraging younger girls to get involved in the sport. They officiate at matches and run competitions at school. Erin Hann, Morgan Carter and Daisy Ingall are superb role models and communicate their passion for the game to the younger girls, so by the time they join us in Year 7 they already know the fun netball can be. Ex-student Mollie Martin still returns every week to assist in the running of Year 7 & 8 Netball club, with over 60 pupils attending!
How do we do in competitions?
We enter teams for the School Sports Partnership League, playing weekly against a range of local schools. Players of all abilities have a chance to play at these matches having fun, trying out their skills and working as a team in a competition situation.
However, we do have players who like to take their sport to a challenging level and for them we have entered U12, U13 and U15 teams in the School Sports Magazine National Cup. It’s a knockout league and means the girls face serious competition from strong teams based in many different parts of the country. The U15 team recently played Glenmoor and Winton Academies from Dorset. This means they have got through to the 3rd round to play Millfield School at home on 17th November. These will be very competitive games against strong sides.
The U13 and U12 teams are also into the third round having recently beat Torquay Grammar School for Girls. The U13’s have drawn Millfield in the next round to be played on Friday 11th November at home and the U12’s are to play a team from Wales, Cwm Rhymi School, on Wednesday 16th November.
In 2015 our U16 netball team were national finalists, and 2016 we reached the regional finals in both U14 and U16 age groups. We have great teams this year and I know they’ll give their best at every stage of the tournament.
If you are interested in the sport of netball, why not take a look at this article on the netball super league.