By Neto Baptiste
The Antigua and Barbuda Netball Association (ABNA) is in for a busy September with both the senior men’s and women’s national squads set to compete in separate competitions across the Caribbean.
The senior women’s team is set to take part in the 4th Annual ECCB/OECS International Netball Series which will take place in St Lucia, starting later this month, while the men’s team is currently in St Kitts where they will play in the AFNA (Americas Federation of Netball Associations) men’s tournament starting this week.
President of the association and former national goal shoot, Karen Joseph, predicts the ECCB Series will be a challenging one given the inexperience within the women’s squad.
“It’s going to be a challenge as I said because we have some youngsters there that are new to the competition, and it is going to be a tough competition. They didn’t do as good as I had hoped in Guadeloupe, but I knew that was going to be an issue given they were new players and had never travelled and played outside of Antigua before, but we are in the process of rebuilding our senior team and that’s where we are,” she said.
Team Antigua and Barbuda will compete alongside Grenada, hosts St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica, Anguilla and Montserrat.
Joseph, who travels as Manager, said the squad had earlier been pulled from the tournament due to low turnout at training sessions.
“We had some issues and as a matter of a fact, the team was pulled out of going there. Remember we hosted last year with 10 teams, and as a matter of a fact, we had some issues with the team in terms of traveling and we had pulled out the team, but then re-entered the team and the one [manager] we had previously was no longer available so I had to fill the role, and Sanchez is new to the coaching business so I think my input would be needed to help Sanchez in some part of the games,” she said.
The women’s team will be coached by Sanchez Martin with Justin Joseph as physio.
Meanwhile, a 12-member senior men’s team will take on the likes of hosts St Kitts, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, USA and England in the AFNA tournament starting Wednesday. This marks the first time Antigua and Barbuda is represented in a men’s netball tournament at the national level.
“The guys are eager, they are tough and thy have been playing netball for years in Antigua where we always have a male division or a mixed division. It’s a big thing in Europe and as a matter of a fact, from the last meeting we had, in order for netball to get into the Olympics we will have to incorporate males in it and that’s where its heading now and so the region is trying to push the male competition and that’s where we are now,” Joseph said.
The senior women’s team is set to depart on September 21 for St Lucia while the men’s team departed on Monday for St. Kitts.
Women’s Squad: Tyea Ladoo (Wing Defence, Goal Defence, Goal-Keep), Viola Francis (Center, Wing Defence, Goal Defence), Tanya Green (Goal Defence, Goal-Keep), Kizzy Hughes (Center, Wing Attack, Wing Defence), Shermaine Reifer (Goal Defence, Wing Attack, Winge Defence), Tashana Bloomfield (Goal Defence, Goal Attack, Goal-Keep), Reyna Regis (Goal Shoot, Goal Attack, Goal-Keep), Charmaine Wetherill (Wing Attack, Center, Wing Defence), Anajah Anthony (Wing Defence, Goal Defence, Center), Zhanira Pereira (Goal Shoot, Goal Attack), Jonelly Encarnacion (Center, Wing Attack, Wing Defence), Amey Lake (Goal Attack, Goal Shoot).
Men’s Squad: Akiel Hazelwood, Carlton Albert, Marcas Cornelius, Adrian Constant, Coy Quinland, Jason Modest, Randy Frederick, Clifton Lloyd, Carl Kirby, Anjis Anthony, Jarrell Brown, Rodney Peters.
