We know many of you have been keeping in touch, quizzing, chatting, training and even ’tik-tok’ing together, so this is really just to touch base as a whole, let you know what we know and give some idea of next steps!

Starting with Prem/ER…
Our Prem/ER athletes have been gifted an off season to recover and recuperate both physically and mentally and have had free rein to keep active in whatever way they have chosen! We have recently started back with some zoom S&C and small group sessions and while we wait for further updates from England Netball, we’re having regular meetings to make sure we are ready to move and that our athletes are prepared in the best way, at the right time.

What’s happening with trials?
We have postponed trials for all squads and are hoping to reschedule these for September. As soon as we have finished working this through with Sportspark, we’ll let you have the details. Realistically, September is the earliest they will happen, and even then, there is no guarantee.

The important bit - register your interest!
For any athlete who is interested in playing for our Prem or Regional squads in the 20/21 season (whenever that may start!), Karen Webb & Alex Daalhuizen are holding a zoom meeting on Monday 22 June at 8pm. This meeting is open to external athletes too and everyone is encouraged to register their interest here: 20/21 Prem/Regional interest form.

Alex will be taking athletes through our phases of return so they will be able to move through them with us with an understanding of why they are doing what they’re doing! It’s important to us that we welcome anyone interested in the new season and that they are given the opportunity to join our pre-season programme.

More info is due soon
England Netball are due to release some more info to us on 29 June - concluding the current Prem season and hopefully sharing plans for three potential 20/21 season start dates - late September, late October and January 2021. We have contacted all our partner venues to keep them in the loop.

What about Regional and local league?
The Regional leagues were concluded using an average points system and we have a provisional 20/21 calendar. This is of course totally dependent on netball resuming, so following the EN announcement on 29 June, we expect to hear more about both regional and local leagues. We’ll share updates as soon as we have them and start to re-engage with all of our local league squads too.

Next up - our junior members!
Trials for our u11-u16 academy squads will be following the same timeline as Prem/ER. Our academy coaches are currently discussing what the next couple of months will look like and will be in touch soon. We are also keeping in contact with NCNA Academy head coach, Gemma Ashton, to make sure we can support our athletes who wish to go through the screening process.

The u14/16 regional entry tournament has already been provisionally moved to 5/6 September and our coaches are looking at how they can best prep from both an athlete and an administration and logistical perspective.

JDC’s are beginning to investigate what a re-start may look like for them too in terms of venue availability, session numbers, how to work in small groups, numbers of coaches required, equipment to make it work safely, etc. We may be able to offer some virtual session link ups with our academy squads over the next couple of months too so keep an eye on social media!

And as for actually ‘running’ our club…
Our current committee are starting to mobilise and our AGM will kick-start everything back off in earnest! We’ll share more info about our AGM soon, but please put Monday 13 July in your diary! We’ve scheduled it directly after both the Norfolk County and East Region AGM’s so we have the clearest picture available for netball in our area.

When will we be able to renew EN and club membership?
We’ve spoken to the EN membership department today and ask you to be ready to renew your membership at the start of August. This is especially important for anyone wishing to trial for Prem/ER and the u14/16 academy squads as squad sheets will need to be submitted, according to usual timelines. This could obviously change and we’ll keep you updated on next steps. We do know that our club recommendation for our AGM is no increase of fees and Norfolk County are proposing the same at their AGM too. So hopefully it will be as straightforward as purchasing your package on ENgage when it opens for the new season!

The need to celebrate!
Although our current season ended prematurely, we still have lots of things to celebrate! Awards Night is currently scheduled for Friday 9 October and we’re working with our venue to understand what our options may look like. But rest assured, we’ll look at every option we can to bring you something special, even if we have to resort to a virtual celebration!

Have a question you would like answered?
Then drop our chairman – James Bowman – an email at nuncchairperson@gmail.com and we’ll get back to you!

As always, #letsgoblue