Photo Credit: Courtesy Of Sonya Ottaway
Have you ever heard of netball? Although this sport is not perhaps familiar to those on this side of the pond, it is a fast-growing staple elsewhere. According to Business Review Australia, the national netball women’s team—the Diamonds—is ranked higher than the national union rugby team and the national cricket team in terms of success. In contrast, netball barely makes a blip on the screen in the United States. This will soon be changed if grassroots netball teams and organizations around the country have anything to say about it. Recent growth in the sport suggests some in the U.S. are starting to warm to this game that has ties to our past.
History
While an untrained eye might find similarities between netball and basketball, they are, in fact, quite different. Although each sport is played on a rectangular court with 10-foot goals, and opposing teams attempt to score goals with a ball, the similarities end there. It is interesting to note that the roots of netball can be traced to James Naismith—the founder of America’s basketball game—more than 120 years ago. Rumor has it Naismith sent a letter to a physical-education teacher in New Orleans outlining various zones that players patrolled during a basketball game; these zones were interpreted as being a part of the court and thus restricted players’ movement within them. This became the framework for netball, which governs the following during play:
- Each team fields seven players per side.