Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Israel Netball constantly strives to improve match play, officiating and general development. We would like to express our great appreciation to Europe Netball and World Netball who have assisted Israel Netball in many ways and provide support for coaching, umpiring, development and more.

A number of directions are currently being pursued to advance our favourite sport in Israel.

Umpiring 

In November 2008, Israel Netball hosted Gary Holden who delivered the Level C Umpiring Course over an intensive few days. Seven representatives from Israel Netball participated in the course which included three practical and three theory sessions. 

During the netball tournament of the 18th Maccabi Games, which was hosted by Israel Netball, four of the seven candidates were tested on their umpiring competencies by the international umpires who officiated at the games. We are proud to announce that all four ladies were successful.

Special gratitude is owed to Sheelagh Redpath from England, who has greatly assisted Israel Netball in advancing the development of accredited umpires.

During the 2013/2014 season, Israel Netball decided to focus its efforts on umpiring and applied for a Net Effect Grant. The grant covered the rental of a sports hall for sessions held for trainee umpires led by one of the local Level-C umpires and a 4-day visit at the end of May by international umpire Sarah Watts. During her stay, Sarah was kept busy enhancing the knowledge of the trainees and mentoring Israel's junior players at their weekly practices.

In June while attending the NE AGM and Council, Alan Anderson (the NE Officiating Lead), his wife Ann (a qualified invigilator) and Arlene Leary (an umpiring assessor and representative from Netball Scotland) very kindly carried out pre-assessments at the IN League Finals and on the next day a practical assessment as well as theory and fitness tests.

Israel Netball boasts several accredited C umpires but since umpires are always in short supply, we continue to focus on training new ones. In particular we encourage our younger players to try umpiring during their training sessions as this helps them not only on their paths to becoming umpires but also enhances their knowledge of netball rules. Another visit by Gary is planned for the end of June 2022.

Coaching

In June 2005, a Level 1 Coaching Course was held within the framework of the FENA AGM in Malta. Three Israeli representatives participated in the Level 1 course together with a group of Maltese netball coaches. All three Israelis passed the course and were accredited with Level 1 Coaching certification.

These efforts were followed up in November 2005, when former England coach Liz Broomhead visited Israel to deliver the Level 2 Coaching Course, with the support of IFNA and FENA. In line with Liz’s efforts to develop netball internationally, she instructed the three representatives from Israel Netball who had successfully completed the Level 1 course, and all three coaches passed and received their Level 2 certification. Over the years, Liz has become a great friend of Israel Netball and is always available to give us great advice and innovative ideas. 

A further Level 1 Coaching Course was held in November 2009 when Israel Netball hosted Joan Young, a former England Netball Regional Talent Coach. Joan was responsible for holding trials to select the squad that represented Israel Netball in Malta in 2010. Taking full advantage of Joan's extensive knowledge of netball, six additional netballers were rewarded with Level 1 Coaching certificates.

General 

Since netball commenced in Israel, a number of dedicated individuals have assisted in various ways to get Israel Netball up-and-running:

  • Beverly Jones, from England, has provided Israel Netball with wonderful support. Her passion for netball has helped the development of netball in Israel, through assistance in running the netball tournaments within the Maccabi Games, behind-the-scenes help with administrative issues, and support for the Israeli team at international netball events.
  • Carol Gold (“Goldie”) from England has also assisted greatly, particularly in regard to game development. In addition to making time to take trainings during her trips to Israel, Carol has assisted in coaching the Israel Netball teams during tournaments in Wales, Ireland and Malta, as well as assisting with team selection. Similarly, Lauren Erlich from Australia, has dedicated many hours to Israel Netball, running trainings during the six months that she spent in Israel, as well as undertaking team selection when needed.
  • Gratitude is also owed to Stuart Lustigman from England, who has provided valuable advice and support from Israel Netball’s earliest days, and continues to be a committed friend of Israel Netball.
  • Israel Netball would also like to express its sincere gratitude to Asaf Stolarz from Israel, former Director of the Maccabi Games Sports Department, who has been instrumental in assisting Israel Netball to become a registered non-profit organisation, as well as helping with many issues such as including netball in the Maccabi Games since 2001.