THE Kowree Naracoorte Tatiara Netball Association is another casualty of the on-going affects of the COVID-19 crisis after it announced competition will not take place in 2020.
The unprecedented call was made during a league meeting on Monday night where nine clubs voted to determine the outcome of competitive netball this season.
It arrived just four days after the KNTFL announced it will not play this year.
Penola Netball Club president Karly Honner represented the Eagles at the meeting and said many did not fancy rushing into a season in the depths of winter.
“There were a couple of clubs that wanted to play, but the majority were not comfortable playing seniors this year,” she said.
“With the season expected to start in July, we had a duty of care to consider people getting their bodies right and because it is so cold, the risk of injuries could have been higher.
“That was the main reason why people are not as keen to play.”
Honner also believed a shorter season without being accompanied by senior football was a major factor in the decision.
Despite senior players being forced to remain away from the courts in a competitive environment this year, clubs are determined to keep their youngsters shooting goals.
Honner said a junior carnival was approved at the meeting, but is still in the initial planning stages.
“We also voted on whether juniors should go ahead and it was decided we want to do something because it would have been really disappointing for them to miss out on a year of development,” she said.
“It is looking likely we might do some sort of carnival arrangement, but we are still working through exactly how it will look.
“At the moment we have gone back to our individual clubs to see how many girls want to participate and the amount of grades we can fill.
“Many of those girls are desperate to get out of the house and run.”
Looking ahead, Honner revealed a social competition could be an option to keep people on the courts.
“We may potentially look at social netball later in the year,” she said
“At this stage we have not really thought about it, but there are so many people who are keen to play netball in Penola.”
This amount of interest in netball has given Honner confidence the club could continue to prosper.
The players remained motivated during the extended pre-season completing fitness sessions, while committed sponsors have instead paid to support next year’s campaign.
In her first year at the helm of the netball club, Honner could not have prepared for the challenges ahead.
But she has been able to ride the bumps and said the Eagles are well poised to return to the courts.
“I think we will be fine,” Honner said.
“I am just disappointed we could not bring netball to everyone this year, but at the end of the day we are in unprecedented times.”
