SVGNA plotting sport’s restructuring

The executive of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Netball Association (SVGNA) is plotting a set of structures aimed at putting the sport on firmer footing.

Some of the plans of the SVGNA were made known last Sunday at the Kingstown Netball Centre, when the association’s president Doris Mc Intosh mounted the podium at the opening of the 2017 Flow National Netball Tournament.

Listing the changes, Mc Intosh revealed that the issue of not enough competition among the more accomplished teams has been addressed.

“The executive took the decision to merge the first and second divisions, which will now become Division One,” Mc Intosh informed.

Continuing her executive‘s layout for the development of netball from a young age, Mc Intosh said, “We have taken the decision to bring together a group of players, some as young as 13 years old, to participate in this year’s national tournament, in an effort to have them play together in preparation for the 2018 Regional Jean Pierre Under-16 tournament”.

Mc Intosh stated that the selection of that young talent will “serve as the veritable apprenticeship for eventual participation on the senior team”.

Also part of the development thrust, Mc Intosh referred to a relook at the combined inter-secondary schools’ team to the national tournament.

“After being absent for several years, we will see the return of the Inter-Secondary Schools’ team back in this year’s national competition… In this way, they will have a splendid opportunity to be better prepared for this year’s Windward Islands School Games,” she pointed out.

At the end of the line, Mc Intosh noted that after the prolonged absence of the senior Caribbean Netball Association’s tournament, we should see a return this year, and she urged the seasoned players to use the national tournament to better their skills, so that St Vincent and the Grenadines can select a formidable team, when the time comes.

Touching all aspects of competition, Mc Intosh gleaned on the touchy “area competitions”, which have mushroomed in all parts of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Whilst accepting that the area competitions serve a good intent, Mc Intosh called for some streamlining.

“The area associations” tournaments are designed for teams in the particular area… We must, therefore allow each area to develop teams from their particular communities,” the SVGNA head proposed.

And, plans are also in store for those recreational netballers, who use the Firms and Industrial competition to burn some calories.

Having been absent for the past two years, Mc Intosh reasoned, “My executive and I felt it (Firms and Industrial competition) had lost the purpose for which it was intended… We were persuaded that, there was need to restructure this competition, and so, this year we will see the emergence of the competition in two divisions – those who can play the game very well would be in one division and those who are just learning the game and want to play for fun will be in another”.