‘Our club is a support system – we’re family’
Rebecca Frowde, 41, plays netball for the Phoenix Flames team in Chingford, east London
Netball really is the great leveller, in terms of age. In my club, the Phoenix Flames, players range from 11 to 65, and we all train together – meaning I get to play against my daughter, who’s 18, which is really fun.
I first started playing netball in primary school, and I kept it up until I had my children, at 23 and 26. Then I had a really big gap, but I went back to it in my 30s and joined a local team. I’ve been with my current team for about five years now.
The diversity of netball means there’s a position for everybody. For wing attack you need to be nippy, speedy and creative with how you make your plays. With goal defence you need to be fast-moving but also dogged, solid and tenacious.
I’ve always played goal attack or goal shooter. I like the pressure of being one of only two people who can go for those goals and score for the team, and that really motivates and drives me.
Our club has different levels, catering to countylevel players right down to the players who play purely for the love of netball. I used to be in the first team but
‘We’ve celebrated Christmas and birthdays together’
I’ve taken a bit of a step back now, after starting a new job in lockdown and wanting to spend more time with my two daughters.
Being in the set teams requires quite a lot of commitment, as you play matches every Saturday. I still play most Saturdays (Covid permitting) and support the lower divisions, but I dip in and out of training.
I think lockdown has made us realise the physical and mental benefits of being active and social. My netball club is a support system, and there is a real family atmosphere; we even set up a hardship fund during Covid for players who were going through a hard time. There’s a community spirit that you get from the club that you don’t feel when you’re wrestling with the weights alone in the gym.
We’ve made friends, and that friendship stretches beyond the court; we have been on jollies to Butlin’s, celebrated Christmas and birthdays together and, in the time of Covid, have been particularly active on our WhatsApp group.