Glasgow's going wild for netball

Glasgow Wild Cats




In their second season playing in the elite Co-operative Netball Superleague, the Glasgow Wildcats are certainly building momentum among their Scottish fans and looking towards success in the upcoming 2014 Common Wealth games.
Wowing viewers in their dazzling pink kits, the Wildcats have been training extremely hard this season having officially been made into a franchise thanks to help from a sporting partnership with Glasgow City Council, Culture and Sport Glasgow, Glasgow University and Glasgow Netball Association.
The franchise has provided the team the opportunity to play in the Netball Superleague which is the leading UK domestic netball competition. It includes 9 regional sides taking part, comprising seven English teams, a team from Wales and the Glasgow Wildcats.

Competing in the Super league has also had other benefits for the team as Sky are in agreement to televise the games, allowing further media interest for Netball and its players.

Anne Ward, Chief Executive Officer for Netball Scotland believes this move can bring both direct benefits to the team and also health benefits to the country. She said: “With the Co-Operative Netball Superleague televised, the enhanced media exposure for Scottish netball and for our national players – who make up the majority of the Glasgow Wildcats Team – is immense. This exposure will help to develop our top players as role models who can inspire girls and women up and down the country not only to stay involved in the sport – as players, coaches, umpires and volunteers – but also to choose netball for the first time.

“Young people in particular are inspired by sporting heroes – but until now, sporting heroines have been relatively few and far between in comparison. And with the huge focus on obesity, poor fitness and low uptake of sport amongst girls in particular - netball with its 95% female profile, is well placed to address this.”

Showing these cats means business; the team implemented Scottish National Coach Denise Holland as their head coach and are working on their skills to a new level of sporting professionalism.

The Wildcats remain training toward improving Scotland’s place in the Netball World ranking, which is currently 17th, and developing the skills of elite players who will represent the city in the 2014 games.

Not only are the Wildcats looking to galvanise at a national level, they are gearing up for a project which will give Glasgow youngsters the chance to appreciate the fine game. All 170 primary and 21 secondary schools within the city will be involved in an extensive participation programme leading up to and beyond the 2014 Commonwealth Games. The programme will aim to increase the number of after schools clubs and also the number of teams involved in the Glasgow Schools Netball League/Festival Programme.


For more information on the team visit www.glasgowwildcats.co.uk