How does it feel to be club captain this year?
I love being club captain. It was a privilege to be voted in by my fellow team and club mates.
How do you find time to play with all of your university commitments?
Initially it was a struggle due to all of the set-up of netball and paper work that was required. Balancing all of this and third year was difficult however due to the support and work from the other members of the committee I managed to get everything done.
What is it that you enjoy about netball?
I enjoy the fact that it’s a team sport and the majority of my best friends are all netball girls. I’ve always been sporty and thrive off of competition. Therefore, netball is perfect for me!
Is netball as girly as it seems?
No! Everyone has a perception of netball as being girly due to what they are taught in primary school. Netball can be an extremely physical sport in terms of contact. Most of the girls will have some form of story about being thrown about by their opponent on the court. In Australia and New Zealand netball is viewed as a mixed sport and this is where the world’s best players tend to come from. The UK has a very narrow view upon our sport. When we make the footballers play against us they all love it and agree that it is very physically demanding and is a highly skilled sport. The only girly element is the fact we get to play in dresses!
The World Youth Championships were in Scotland not that long ago, do you think that will have made an impact?
I hope it will have had a positive impact in terms of encouraging people to join the sport or at least try it out. Due to Netball also being a Commonwealth Sport hopefully this will also promote Netball in 2014 around Glasgow and the whole of Scotland.
You were also in Australia for the summer, what is the standard of netball like there?
The standard of netball in Australia is the best in the world. In the league I participated in 2,500 spectators came down every Saturday to watch girls as young as six years old playing all the way up to the ladies league. The fact they start so young makes them reach a higher level of play at a younger age and fulfil their full potential. The Super League standard of play which is professional (we don’t have professional netball over here) is phenomenal. The shortest players are 6ft 2 so you can imagine the height of the shooters and defenders! I hope one day netball becomes a professional sport in this country.
When is your first game?
The Saturday 1sts season begins on Saturday and the 2nds first match is the weekend after.
Do you think Strathclyde will win?
Of course we will! Well let’s hope so!