Netball Arrives in Sunderland

Which words spring to mind when you hear the term “sport”? Football? Cricket? Rugby?  Well, how about netball? Little television coverage and next to no media exposure means this sport nestles predominantly under the radar, whilst many people consider it as an activity solely played during games lessons.

The crowd at Cityspace on Tuesday 2^nd February suggested otherwise. Sunderland played host to a friendly match between England Womens Netball team and Northumbria, a match labelled as a “warm up” for the Co-Operative International Netball Series kicking off late this month.

Around 400 Fans filed into the Cityspace Venue shortly before 7, a perfect host for the event with its brand new facilities, ideal for the end-to-end battle we were about to witness.

The Players had spent the day working and training with University Students and a selection of younger sporty members of the community who enjoyed the chance to hone their skills with the very best in the business.

In the warm up, the gulf between the two teams became apparent, with many of the England players towering above the average man (like myself) whilst converting all of their practice shots, no matter the distance from the net.

The Crowd were in good voice and the match got underway with England starting like a house on fire scoring two early points. A Shell-shocked Northumbria responded with a repost of their own and the socreline fluctuated for a further few minutes.

This game was fast paced, blink and you missed a crucial moment, there was a huge price to pay for wandering minds, but with the blistering pace, focus was easy to maintain.

Northumbria were guilty of missing chances early whilst England Capitalised with Conway and Harten potent in attack. “that’s quality stuff” remarked a gentleman sat in front, the perfect summation of a frantic first half. The score being 32-18 in the favour of England.

At half time I spotted a couple of ladies just in front of me who chose to venture out of their houses having made the slightly questionable decision to wear flip flops in February , each to their own. Footwear aside, the second half began with the same relentless pace we had been treated to for the previous 30 minutes.

England continued to breeze through the Northumbrian Defence, Wood however made a bold effort to reduce the deficit and it was end-to-end for the majority of the half. In the end, Englands quality shone through and they were able to put the match to bed, running out 64-30 winners.

A cracking nights entertainment and perfect preparation for England’s important clash with Australia, in which a victory could potentially see them trouble the top spot in the world rankings.

I was surprised by the amount of enjoyment I took from a sport I had previously dismissed and next time a netball event rolls into town, why not give it a go?

Jack