Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Club of the week
St Andrew’s Netball Club
The club of the week is the St Andrew’s Netball Club.
We chat with club secretary Nicola Lafferty about some of their efforts on and off the park.
How did the club get started?
The club originally began in Bellshill as Cardinal Newman Netball Club and played there for over 20 years, mainly serving adults before moving to St Andrew’s Community Hub when it opened in 2006.
For the first few years, the club remained known as Cardinal Newman Netball Club until 2008 where we changed our name to St Andrew’s Netball Club, with the teams being called Diamonds and Sapphires.
On moving to our new facilities, the club was still very much adult orientated. Over time, we began to link with the Active Sports Coordinator based in St Andrew’s High School, helping us to link up with the local schools. This link has helped our expansion with the result being the formation of our under-17 squad, known as the Emeralds.
We have continued to expand successfully into under-15s and our ever growing under-13 and under-11s squads, creating a pathway to North Lanarkshire District.
St Andrew’s Netball Club has a proud history of serving girls and women in the North Lanarkshire area.
What kind of success has your club had?
In recent years our two teams have had success in the Lanarkshire League divisions One and Two. In season 2016/2017, the Sapphires won Division Two while the Diamonds came second in Division One, reaching the Netball Premier League play-off.
This season has been difficult as the Lanarkshire League disbanded and we now play in the Glasgow Netball Association and City of Edinburgh Netball Association. We have performed well in each of the leagues this season.
When and what time do the club train and compete?
All age groups train on a Wednesday night in St Andrew’s High School. Our under-11s and under-13s train from 5pm, under-15s from 6pm and our adults/under-17s from 7pm. Events for juniors are usually on a Saturday, while Glasgow games for adults are on a Wednesday or Thursday and in Edinburgh on a Sunday afternoon.
Who are the coaches?
Our head coach is Ann Lafferty who coaches our adults and U17 squads. Clare McCrory and Tricia Howell coach our U15 team, Nicola McMullan coaches our U13 side and Carol Colquhoun our U11s. We also have a group of girls who help us out through the active schools program.
What difficulties does the club struggle to overcome?
We have seen a huge growth in popularity amongst our juniors.
Since the disbandment of the Lanarkshire League, we have tried to ensure there is still a pathway for our U17s to progress and continue to develop our adults.
To ensure playing opportunities for everyone, we had to enter the Glasgow and Edinburgh league. This means more travelling plus more costs.
We try hard to fundraise with our own initiatives and with the backing of our sponsors Benecos, a company with reasonably priced natural make-up, natural nail polish and natural skincare products.
As the club grows, communication with all parents, guardians and players is paramount and to let them know about our sponsorship and this source of funding for the club. We have such a limited time, getting word out there can be difficult.
How does the club benefit the community?
We encourage girls of all ages and abilities to come along and join in. Exercise is vital for physical health and mental health and playing with friends brings enjoyment. We have girls coming from all over North Lanarkshire to play with us, so we aren’t just a club for Coatbridge. We welcome everyone.
We also launched the North Lanarkshire District squad using St Andrew’s as a base.
We involve the families and friends of our players as much as we can.
We also host a yearly masters tournament where players from Cardinal Newman, the former Coatbridge netball club, and ex-players from St Andrews get together for fun and a chat with bite to eat after.
How much work goes into running the club?
I could be here all day answering this one! Lots of work goes in behind the scenes and coordination to get each squad and age group the correct training and games. Our coaches all work together and meet regularly to discuss player progress. Fundraising takes up a lot of time and effort as well.
How would someone join your club?
If anyone would be interested in finding out more information about us, they can email sanc-coatbridge@hotmail.com, or find us on Facebook at our group St Andrew’s Netball Club.
Players of all age groups are welcome to come along on a Wednesday night at the respective times, first night is free!