THE call was made on Monday night to cancel both the 2020 Western Border football and netball seasons and according to netball association president Jo Gibbs there were mixed emotions following the announcement.
Those emotions are both within herself and the association as a whole, but she said in the end the right decision was made.
However, that does not make the outcome any less disappointing.
“I sort of thought with everything that is going on I might have felt a bit relieved, but not so much,” Gibbs told The Border Watch yesterday.
She said it was a simple case of what had been said from the start – “no Casterton, no play.”
That may have been the nail in the coffin as it unfolded, but Gibbs said there was a list of reasons which backed the decision to abandon the 2020 season.
“The protocols and the guidelines we would have to follow to get it up and running – and when you think about a volunteer base that is probably already stretched to the max – we just seem to be coming up against more and more roadblocks,” she said.
“That made us decide it is not the best thing for us this year.”
Gibbs said while it was disappointing netball courts will be left bare this season, it would not have been fair to run a competition which was hindered so heavily by COVID-19 restrictions.
“If you have it (the season), you want it to be the best it can be,” she said.
“It is just disappointing we could not get some sort of season up.
“I know there were mixed responses from our netball players.
“There is probably a sense of relief, but it is mixed emotions – relief, disappointment and where to from here?”
However, all is not lost, with the WBNA committed to running an altered junior season of some description this year, as has been the impression given by other cancelled competitions.
Gibbs said it was important to keep the young players involved in the game and to give them an opportunity to hit the courts.
“Our netball executive will meet next week and I am touching base with the junior football committee just to have some discussions with them,” she said.
“Then we will get together with our delegates probably the week after, just to get a feel for our clubs and see what we can put together.
“We just want to keep them (the juniors) engaged and allow them the opportunity to play their chosen sport.”
From a senior point of view Gibbs believes the association will come back bigger and better in 2021.
With another year to prepare and for players to miss the game, she expects “everyone will be so keen” to return to the courts next season.
