A report by Niamh Rushton on this term's Netball News.

It has been a very exciting and successful end of term for the Netball Club at Norwich school. The U14, U16 and U19 teams all represented the school in the County Finals at UEA. With skill, determination and composure all three teams managed to secure 1st place, a testament to their hard work this term.

The U19 team started this term with preseason training and selections on the first day back from summer, the girls hard work made decisions hard and showed a promising start to what was going to be a successful season. From that point on the girls have been training weekly on a Wednesday after school and have even added in weekly early morning sessions for the shooters. This proves how hard the girls have been working on the run up to the county tournament. They have also played two friendly matches to help with preparation, winning 48-10 and 43-10. These were two very promising matches for the girls and gave them confidence going into the tournament last week. The team started off the day in their group, where they won all 5 of their games, including an impressive 30-0 win. The team came top of their table and progressed to the semi-finals where they confidently won 18-1against Norwich High School, before beating Gresham’s in the final in a closely contested match. By winning the county tournament, the girls now go on to compete in the England Netball National Schools Regional Round. The girls are already hard at work, they have received personal feedback from their performances and are ready to begin training and improving in preparation for February.

The U16 team have also been hard at work from the start of term, in preparation for the Area tournament and County tournament. The girls started their season in early October with the Area tournament hosted by Norwich school, here they came up against 5 local schools, competing for a place at the County tournament. The girls played well and came top of the table, winning all their games confidently. With their success in the tournament, the team turned their attention to the County tournament. The girls have been training weekly, showing determination and hard work and had the opportunity to play a friendly game against Framlingham College which they won 40-8. The girls took confidence from this match, going into the tournament a couple of weeks ago. On the day, they faced four other teams in their group round, winning all matches and quickly progressing to the semi-finals. The girls did not let their intensity or hard work drop off and when faced with a challenging semi-final the girls stepped up and won 8-6, before progressing to face a strong Wymondham College side in the finals. However, despite a goal-for-goal game, the girls held their nerves and won 7-5, becoming County Champions.

Finally, the U14 team have also had a very successful to the start to their season. The girls started off well with a 35-28 win in the first round of the Sisters N Sport National Cup. With weekly training and hard work from all the girls, they felt ready for the Area tournament. The girls played and won 6 matches, including a 27-0 win and coming top

of the group, qualifying for the next round. They continued their weekly training in preparation for the tournament, showing progression during those few weeks leading up to the County Round. On the day, the team played four other schools in their group and after some well contested matches, finished top of their group. They then progressed on to win the semi-finals 13-7, before finishing off the day playing Gresham’s in the final and winning 14-6. The girls have shown hard work and determination throughout this term and are excited to compete in the England Netball National Schools Regional competition in February.

It is an incredible achievement to have 3 unbeaten, County Champions, and we wish all three teams the best of luck for next February.