Netball Scotland are thrilled to launch our very first Academic Partnership with St George’s School, Edinburgh.

This exciting collaboration is a first of its kind for Netball Scotland and one that will see us work together with St George’s to increase community participation in netball and engage with more young people as we continue to promote the many benefits of sport to overall health and wellbeing.

St George’s have already played an instrumental role in the restart of netball in Edinburgh by opening their doors and the access to their fantastic outdoor netball facilities to some of the existing netball community. Joining forces with the highly regarded girls’ day and boarding school allows us the opportunity to further collaborate and open up more opportunities to engage with and inspire young people through the power of sport.

Clare Nelson, CEO of Netball Scotland;

“I am immensely proud of this new partnership with St. George’s – a partnership which I hope will create a powerful model for how we grow and develop as a sport through young people, education and communities. This partnership reflects our commitment to using our platform and power as a sport to engage with, educate, empower and inspire the next generation of leaders, athletes, volunteers and game changers who are needed to build a better, fairer and more equal world for all, in and outside of sport.”

Geraldine McGuire, Head of Development, Netball Scotland;

“We are very much looking forward to activating our first Academic Partnership with St George’s School for Girls.  Together we are fully committed to using sport and physical activity to intentionally bring about positive change for individuals and communities.  Combining our knowledge and expertise in netball and the education sector, this is an exciting opportunity for us to make a positive impact on the physical and mental health and wellbeing of both the girls at St George’s and members of the wider community.”

Alex Hems, Head of St George’s School, Edinburgh;

“This partnership with Netball Scotland is an exciting step forward for St George’s. We are delighted to have this chance to combine expertise and experience with such a dynamic governing body, to open up opportunities for access to netball for women and girls across Scotland. Together I am sure we can be significant change-makers in the game and in education. This is an inspiring and important new era for empowering girls through sport.”

Mel Benson, Head of Lower School & Community Engagement, St George’s School;

“It has been so rewarding working with Netball Scotland to help restart the sport on the back of the pandemic. We are passionate about opening our doors and creating and facilitating as many opportunities as possible for girls, women and the wider community to play, compete and enjoy the sport netball. With a very active programme already in place, we are very much looking forward to unlocking further opportunities under the 3 strands; Women & Girls, Education and Community.”

Netball Scotland are delighted to announce that we will host a series of friendly International training matches between the Scottish Thistles, Wales and Northern Ireland Warriors this August.

The much-anticipated action kicks off on Friday 20^th until Sunday 22^nd August at Glasgow’s Emirates Arena and will see each of the three Celtic nations compete against one another in their first run out as national sides since 2019. This event will also mark the Thistles’ first opportunity for international match play since Tamsin Greenway was announced as Scotland’s Head Coach in March 2020.

The Scottish Thistles, Wales and Northern Ireland Warriors are ranked 8^th, 9^th, and 11^th in the World respectively and although these games will not be official ranking fixtures fans can be assured that on court rivalries will be reactivated and all teams will be looking to dominate over the weekend.

After nearly two years without international match play all three nations are keen to get back onto court and into competition, and these games will provide crucial preparation for players and their coaches as they prepare to qualify for, and perform at, the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

Scottish Thistles Head Coach, Tamsin Greenway:

‘After such a strange initial 18 months in the role I’m so excited to finally be able to confirm match play for our Scottish Thistles. It has been such a long time since this group has stepped out together as a national side against international opposition. I know all three teams will be very happy to be back out on court and we are looking forward to the challenge of the competition. It is the first step for us as we build up to next year’s Commonwealth Games, and will give me a real opportunity to work with the players, develop combinations and just be together as a group.’

Northern Ireland Warriors Head Coach, Elaine Rice:

‘Our Warriors are excited to get back on court to assess where we are and what we need to do to ensure qualification for Commonwealth Games. We are fortunate that we are now in a position to compete. We always relish our rivalries with Scotland and Wales, so we will enjoy our training knowing these games are coming up.’

Welsh Netball Head Coach, Sara Hale:

‘It is really pleasing to have friendly competition in the calendar against both Scotland and NI. It will not only be a welcome return to international netball, but also an exciting opportunity for us to expose players and assess where we are as a group, ahead of what is a crucial year for us.’

Further details to be announced in due course.

The experience gained and team success at the Netball World Cup 2017 in Botswana, has lit a fire under the #FutureThistles we are working with.  Netball Scotland are already building towards the Fiji Netball World Youth Cup 2021, with a view of developing our team and helping them achieve their best ever finish at a Netball World Youth Cup.

To realise this goal, we are now recruiting our Under 21 National Management Team to begin work with our athletes in 2019 through to competition in 2021, and everything in between.  The Team Manager is an integral piece of the team, taking lead on providing the coaches and athletes with all that they need for training, leading on communications between the management and squad and working closely with Netball Scotland’s Performance Coordinator.  The type of person suited to this role is organised, confident and has a keen eye for detail, and in return for your services as a volunteer, Netball Scotland are able to provide you with an excellent personal development environment, support from internal staff and experienced volunteers, and of course, the opportunity to travel with the Under 21 Scotland team and make a positive impact on the team competing on the world stage.

We have included a role description and person specification outlining the main requirements of the Team Manager position above.  The deadline for applications for Under 21 National Team Manager is Monday 21st January, with interviews expected to take place during the week of 4th February.  To submit your CV and covering letter, or to discuss this opportunity further, please contact our Pathways Development Manager through lesley.macdonald@netballscotland.com or 07557414347.

#GrowAsAnIndividual #DevelopAsASport #SucceedAsATeam