Dear all
We hope you and your families are safe and well. We certainly have had challenging times. Over the last few weeks our Twitter, new Instagram page, Facebook and club Whatsapp groups have been on overdrive! So much excitement about training and playing. There’s plenty going on behind the scenes and it is incredible how many people are working on things to ensure that our athletes get the very best opportunities to play and train.
National: England Roses
Fabulous news and congratulations to Lydia Harrison who has been selected for U17s Roses Academy. We all know how much dedication and commitment is needed to get to trial never mind be selected and it is also important to recognise Izzy Howes who also trialled. Izzy you may not have been successful this time but to get yourself in that position in the first place deserves much recognition. Harriet King, hopefully your injury fully recovers and you will get your deserved chance too. And for those of you who aspire to be Roses then keep going, keep working. It is not easy but only you can do it.
Pathway: Leeds Rhinos
Well done to all our athletes who are involved in the performance pathway at Leeds Rhinos. We’ve missed you! It is great to see that things are slowly getting back to some kind of normal with some NPL games taking place. Great that we have our own Super-League team in Yorkshire making a very good account of themselves in their first season. We know that pathway athletes have been unable to train or play for Leeds Athletic and some will have had their last training sessions without realising it as they move on. If you have moved on then we want you to remember that you are still very much part of our club. Good luck with your new adventure, be it playing for the university team or another franchise in their pathway.
Elite Netball
Whilst this is not a nationally recognised pathway route, it goes without saying that the high quality experience athletes are getting from this programme is can only make them stronger performers and add to the chances of being selected for a pathway place.
We want to thank Elite Netball for supporting us with some remote training during lockdown and securing sessions from established internationals in their field such as Nat Panagarry, Nat Haythornthwaite and Jamie Peacock.
West Yorkshire Seniors
We have been fortunate to have entered two teams in the West Yorkshire Competition.
Selection of U16/U14to play WY Seniors
Currently England Netball have passed a directive which prohibits pathway athletes participating in community level fixtures. In the past, as a club we have had an unwritten rule where we have offered U16 athletes an opportunity to gain valuable senior experience in the West Yorkshire League. This has been offered when the coaches believe the athlete has demonstrated the ability and maturity to cope at that level.
Due to the current situation regarding pathway athletes not being able to play club fixtures the opportunity has arisen where younger club athletes, U14 and U16, may be approached to play in a senior competition. Selection will be on a needs basis and court time is not guaranteed, but the bigger picture is the introduction to the senior environment and experience at the higher level.
Naturally this will present different opportunities depending on needs and position. It will of course disappoint some athletes and we need parental support to manage expectations. If a junior athlete is aspiring to perform at elite level then they need to prepare for these ups and downs in a challenging environment and being able to take the disappointments and bounce back are crucial parts of that process. Our junior athletes will all progress and develop at different times. Please continue to encourage them regardless of our decisions.
Junior Leagues
We have had 3 U14 teams and 2 U16 teams competing in the West Yorkshire Junior League and there is a friendly on Saturday 15th May v Grangetown for our U12s.
U14/U16 will compete in round 1 of the knockout ENG competition on Saturday 1st May.
Future Competitions and Leagues
Keep an eye on our social media and emails as coaches are looking for opportunities to play in summer tournaments. This work is ongoing and we will confirm later.
Summer ‘pay to train’
Fees were paid last year which covered 7 months:
From 3 May we will run a 4 week pay to train scheme at £10 per session or £30 for the 4 sessions. Most sessions will be on the usual day and time although we are still in the process of firming up times and venues. Team administrators will communicate exact times and venues as soon as possible. These sessions are open to non-members so if you know any talented athletes who may want to join then please tell them to get in touch. Due to COVID numbers are restricted. Please pay into the usual account (details on our website) and put athlete name as the reference.
Trials for 2021/22
These will take place in June. Further information will follow on social media and trial forms can be submitted on the website (not yet live).
Tours
You will have seen a Facebook post some weeks ago about tours. We are tentatively planning a tour to Australia in summer 2023 for U16 to senior level and a tour to Paris for junior athletes. Due to the COVID situation we are not firming up plans yet. Just keep it in mind.
COVID
Please look after each other by sticking to the guidance that you are receiving from your team admins and coaches. Things can change on a daily basis.
Lisa Fox
Club Chair
Leeds Athletic Netball Club
We hope you and your families are safe and well. We certainly have had challenging times. Over the last few weeks our Twitter, new Instagram page, Facebook and club Whatsapp groups have been on overdrive! So much excitement about training and playing. There’s plenty going on behind the scenes and it is incredible how many people are working on things to ensure that our athletes get the very best opportunities to play and train.
National: England Roses
Fabulous news and congratulations to Lydia Harrison who has been selected for U17s Roses Academy. We all know how much dedication and commitment is needed to get to trial never mind be selected and it is also important to recognise Izzy Howes who also trialled. Izzy you may not have been successful this time but to get yourself in that position in the first place deserves much recognition. Harriet King, hopefully your injury fully recovers and you will get your deserved chance too. And for those of you who aspire to be Roses then keep going, keep working. It is not easy but only you can do it.
Pathway: Leeds Rhinos
Well done to all our athletes who are involved in the performance pathway at Leeds Rhinos. We’ve missed you! It is great to see that things are slowly getting back to some kind of normal with some NPL games taking place. Great that we have our own Super-League team in Yorkshire making a very good account of themselves in their first season. We know that pathway athletes have been unable to train or play for Leeds Athletic and some will have had their last training sessions without realising it as they move on. If you have moved on then we want you to remember that you are still very much part of our club. Good luck with your new adventure, be it playing for the university team or another franchise in their pathway.
Elite Netball
Whilst this is not a nationally recognised pathway route, it goes without saying that the high quality experience athletes are getting from this programme is can only make them stronger performers and add to the chances of being selected for a pathway place.
We want to thank Elite Netball for supporting us with some remote training during lockdown and securing sessions from established internationals in their field such as Nat Panagarry, Nat Haythornthwaite and Jamie Peacock.
West Yorkshire Seniors
We have been fortunate to have entered two teams in the West Yorkshire Competition.
Selection of U16/U14to play WY Seniors
Currently England Netball have passed a directive which prohibits pathway athletes participating in community level fixtures. In the past, as a club we have had an unwritten rule where we have offered U16 athletes an opportunity to gain valuable senior experience in the West Yorkshire League. This has been offered when the coaches believe the athlete has demonstrated the ability and maturity to cope at that level.
Due to the current situation regarding pathway athletes not being able to play club fixtures the opportunity has arisen where younger club athletes, U14 and U16, may be approached to play in a senior competition. Selection will be on a needs basis and court time is not guaranteed, but the bigger picture is the introduction to the senior environment and experience at the higher level.
Naturally this will present different opportunities depending on needs and position. It will of course disappoint some athletes and we need parental support to manage expectations. If a junior athlete is aspiring to perform at elite level then they need to prepare for these ups and downs in a challenging environment and being able to take the disappointments and bounce back are crucial parts of that process. Our junior athletes will all progress and develop at different times. Please continue to encourage them regardless of our decisions.
Junior Leagues
We have had 3 U14 teams and 2 U16 teams competing in the West Yorkshire Junior League and there is a friendly on Saturday 15th May v Grangetown for our U12s.
U14/U16 will compete in round 1 of the knockout ENG competition on Saturday 1st May.
Future Competitions and Leagues
Keep an eye on our social media and emails as coaches are looking for opportunities to play in summer tournaments. This work is ongoing and we will confirm later.
Summer ‘pay to train’
Fees were paid last year which covered 7 months:
- 4.5 months we trained normally
- 2 months were refunded
- 1 month’s training was remote
From 3 May we will run a 4 week pay to train scheme at £10 per session or £30 for the 4 sessions. Most sessions will be on the usual day and time although we are still in the process of firming up times and venues. Team administrators will communicate exact times and venues as soon as possible. These sessions are open to non-members so if you know any talented athletes who may want to join then please tell them to get in touch. Due to COVID numbers are restricted. Please pay into the usual account (details on our website) and put athlete name as the reference.
Trials for 2021/22
These will take place in June. Further information will follow on social media and trial forms can be submitted on the website (not yet live).
Tours
You will have seen a Facebook post some weeks ago about tours. We are tentatively planning a tour to Australia in summer 2023 for U16 to senior level and a tour to Paris for junior athletes. Due to the COVID situation we are not firming up plans yet. Just keep it in mind.
COVID
Please look after each other by sticking to the guidance that you are receiving from your team admins and coaches. Things can change on a daily basis.
Lisa Fox
Club Chair
Leeds Athletic Netball Club