March date set for netball return

The Antigua and Barbuda Netball Association’s (ABNA) league will return in early March, hosting a number of divisions including its signature competition, the senior national league. This was revealed by president of the association and former national goalshooter, Karen Joseph, who said the readiness of the YMCA Sports Complex is her executive’s only concern ahead of the 4th March start date.
“The facility at the YMCA is really in a poor state [condition] so we are trying to get certain things in order in terms of trying to get the lights fixed and we are even soliciting paint to go and paint it up even if we have to paint it ourselves, then we will do that. We are trying to get the courts scrubbed and everything just to try and being back our name for netball,” she said. The competition will host matches in the senior, mixed, 13 and under, 16 and under and a new 19 and under division. Joseph explained that the introduction of the 19 and under division ties into a move to launch a regional competition in that age category to be hosted in Jamaica.
“A new school tournament they are going to have as from this year in Jamaica in August. They are targeting the winning teams from other countries to have a tournament so as to give them, the younger ones, more playing time because there is a gap between the under-16, senior and under20 as they are trying to fill that gap, so we have introduced it,” the former player said.
“I am not sure as yet what it is going to look like in terms of that competition but I did it anyway because it’s something we have to do from the senior body,” she added. Competing teams will pay a $200 registration fee while players will pay a $40 insurance fee to be eligible to play in the various leagues. “The only thing we are charging for is the team registration and the insurance and everything else we are just waiving it because we are trying to revive the sport. We don’t want to put them to too much expense. We want the teams to be fully uniformed, so we want them to spend the money on their uniforms to put a colorful vibrancy in the netball for March,” Joseph said.
Netball, at the association level, has been dormant for over 10 years.