Village to take on UK squads

FRIDAY, MAR. 30: Two netball teams from Bermuda are preparing to jet off to the UK to get a taste of what it is like to play against English opposition.

North Village Community Club under-12 and under-14 netball squads will travel to Coventry in the West Midlands tomorrow.

The two squads of 21 young players will take on local teams on Monday and Tuesday.

And then the teams will take part in a regional tournament at the end of the tour.

The UK trip has been organized by the girls coach Stacy Grant and Annette Mirfield.

Ms Grant helped arrange a series of fundraising activities for the players to take part in during the run-up to the tour and she also organized the bookings.

While Mrs Mirfield, who used to play netball to a high level in the UK, used her contacts in Coventry to arrange the games.

Ms Grant said: “The trip is aimed to give the Bermudian players a taste of netball in the UK.

“The majority of the girls travelling are between the ages of 12 and 14 years with a few 10 year olds.

“We have never travelled as a group before so this is a first for NVCC Junior Netball.

“Bermudians are very well travelled people so the girls have travelled before and a few of the older ones have been to the UK, but not to see and play netball. This will be a great experience for them.

“My main reason for planning this trip is to expose my team to netball outside of Bermuda.

“Many of them have never seen netball played anywhere besides Bernard Park Netball Courts in Bermuda.

Encouraged

“Hopefully by the end of this trip they will be encouraged to continue playing netball with much more enthusiasm and vigour, increase and enhance their ball handling skills, footwork and overall knowledge of the game.

“We are looking forward to this trip to make new friends and netball contacts with an aim to make this an annual or bi-annual event.”

Mrs Mirfield added: “I played netball in Coventry for over 30 years and also umpired and coached there.

“I was also a member of the Coventry & District Netball Association. (CWNA)

“The CWNA have been very helpful and have arranged a tournament which they hope will be opened by a civil dignitary from Coventry.”

The two North Village teams and seven adults leave Bermuda on tomorrow’s British Airways flight from London.

They will return to Bermuda on April 6 and hope to fit in a trip to Drayton Manor Theme Park while they are in England.

The tour is expected to be featured in the England Netball magazine.