An impressive 75 junior club players participated in the second Harrogate Phoenix Junior Charity Tournament, raising in excess of £1,800 for charity!
Players (from the U11, U12, U14 and the U16 age groups) entered the tournament as individuals then they were put into squads.
Each squad had players from all age groups and each squad aptly took the name from countries playing netball in the Commonwealth Games: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Malawi, Fiji, Jamaica, Australia and New Zealand.
The aim of the event is to help the girls to appreciate how lucky they are to be healthy and understand that other children are less fortunate, that netball provides so many opportunities to socialise and make new friends and how netball can enable us all to have a thoroughly enjoyable day!
Players from the senior section of the club volunteered their time to act as coaches/managers and umpires on the day; helping to forge a stronger link between the two sections of the club.
The first task – developing their thinking skills – was to find their team coach by recognising the flag of the country!
All teams played each other in a round-robin format and during the lunch break, there was a team knockout shooting competition.
To generate funds, the players paid an entry fee (minimum £5) and there was also a BBQ, a raffle with excellent prizes, a silent auction and a wonderful cake stall.
The games themselves had a competitive edge but also a lovely spirit.
The knockout shooting competition saw teams of four competing to stay out of the dungeon and progress to the next round with Team Wales emerging as the overall winners
In the tournament, the competition was close, especially at the top. Congratulations to Team Jamaica who only lost one game all day and commiserations go to Team England who couldn’t quite replicate the real Commonwealth Games!
Final placings
1st Team Jamaica
2nd Team England
3rd Team Scotland
4th Team Fiji
5th Team Australia
6th Team New Zealand
7th Team Northern Ireland
8th Team Wales
9th Team Malawi
The winners received individual medals and all the girls received a special cupcake decorated with their main playing position – what a treat they were!
The event was truly enjoyable; a lovely atmosphere with glorious, sunny weather and playing our special game together. Great support from parents and grandparents led to a fantastic and very generous amount being raised.
