Rays secure survival cash
THE Northern Rays have won their fight for survival after two sponsors delivered the cash to ensure the embattled club remained in the state netball competition.
The backing of Brothers Leagues Club and Direct Wholesale Tyres means the regional team will stay in the Sapphire Series for the rest of this season and beyond.
The two new backers yesterday confirmed an arrangement that ensures the Rays will see out their three-year licence in the Sapphire Series.
Their sponsorship followed an impassioned plea to the community for support by the Rays and a campaign to ensure their survival.
Netball Queensland chief executive Catherine Clark said the business community had rallied behind the team and demonstrated a strong commitment to helping women’s sports thrive in regional Queensland. “It’s a wonderful result that we have two sponsors stepping forward to ensure that the Northern Rays can continue to play and continue to offer a pathway to elite level sport for regional women and girls,” she said.
Brothers Leagues Club CEO Justin Wilkins said the club was a community-focused organisation and wanted to ensure the team was viable.
“We know how challenging the economic environment is at the moment but we’re a community organisation and we’re part of a close-knit community that supports each other,” he said. “We’re thrilled we can be part of the Northern Rays and keep young women playing sport.”
The club was established to provide a pathway for young netballers in the north and to arrest the trend of talented juniors heading south.
Rays head coach Jillian Joyce was “thrilled” the club would survive and the new pathway maintained.
“We’ve seen so many successful netball players come from regional Queensland. It’s great news that this pathway will continue to foster that talent,” she said. “Our athletes have celebrated this result and we’re all looking forward to focusing on netball and getting a win on the board.”
Direct Wholesale Tyres director Graham Cotter’s personal attachment to the sport drew him to the Rays’ plight.
Part of a netball-mad family, Mr Cotter said it was evident how important the Rays and the Sapphire Series were to Townsville’s netball community.
“My daughter and my granddaughter are netballers – they’d have my guts for garters if they knew we could help and stood idly by,” he said. “Improving opportunities for female athletes in regional Queensland is important and we’re thrilled to be able to help the cause.”
Netball Queensland’s general manager of high performance and sports entertainment Richard McInnes said the organisation would continue sourcing sponsors.