Netball is booming in England thanks to the success of the Roses. GETTY IMAGES
The sight of playground netball matches taking place in schools the length and breadth of the country is "as much part of the English sporting fabric as village green cricket and Sunday morning football," according to Martyn Herman of REUTERS. Tens of thousands of young girls play it at some stage during their education, but "until relatively recently it barely registered in the psyche of the nation’s sports fans." English Netball CEO Joanna Adams admitted the sport previously "had an image problem," but "not any more." Fueled by England’s national team, the Roses, winning the Commonwealth Games gold last year, the sport is "booming" and last weekend a sellout crowd in London watched them beat world champion Australia "in a nailbiting finale to the Quad Series." With a home World Cup "looming" in Liverpool in July, it is "no wonder" Adams said that it is the "biggest time in the history" of the sport in England. She said, "It's because it's the first time the sport has really reached an audience outside the traditional netball audience." The old image of a "rather static game played by girls in bibs has now been replaced by a slick, fast-paced sport where handling skills rival that of basketball." England’s 10-club Superleague, televised live by Sky Sports, includes Saracens Mavericks and Wasps -- both backed by Premiership Rugby clubs. While "getting rich" from playing netball in England is "still a pipedream," Adams believes it can "become a professional career path like in Australia" (REUTERS, 1/24).
