Cumbrian Clubs Raise £2800 for Charity
In September this year, three Cumbrian netball clubs came together to raise £2,800 for Eden Valley Hospice. The fundraising efforts of Penrith, Meerkats, and Harraby Netball Clubs were focused on a charity netball tournament held at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Penrith, which ran alongside a raffle, and in memory of three local netballers who the Cumbrian netball community have lost far too soon. Nichola Jackson (Penrith NC), Jodie Hodgson (Harraby NC) and Jen Manning (Meerkats NC) were much-loved and sorely-missed members of their clubs, and were remembered fondly by all at the tournament on 20 September 2025. Despite the rain forcing play indoors, the tournament was a great success, welcoming eight teams from across Cumbria and the North West. Each team pulled out all the stops to compete at a high standard throughout the day, over several short-form matches which were split into a cup and plate competition. The Cup was won by Harraby Netball Club, with Mavericks coming in second place. They were followed by Meerkats B and Penrith 1 in third and fourth respectively. In the Plate division, the winners were Penrith 2, followed by Meerkats A, Kendal NC, and Diamonds NC (Wigan) in second to fourth places. The honour of Player of the Tournament was shared by Lisa Carruthers (Harraby NC) and Clovis Sleath (Penrith NC). Penrith NC Chair, Caroline Tyson, said of the event – “It was brilliant to be able to join forces with our fellow netball clubs of Meerkats and Harraby in the running of this fundraiser. It’s the second year that we’ve organised a memorial tournament like this and it’s gone from strength to strength. Next year, we hope to welcome more teams from all over the county and region to remember our loved ones that we lost too soon.” The funds raised in their memory have been donated to Eden Valley Hospice, a charity close to many in the community. On the evening of 21 October 2025, Vicki Lesley of Eden Valley Hospice and hospice mascot Hospuss, joined members from the organising clubs alongside fellow Carlisle Netball League teams to celebrate and mark the donation. She remarked that “at Eden Valley Hospice we rely on the kindness and generosity of the local community to ensure we can continue to provide the very best care to people with life limiting conditions. We are so grateful to Penrith Netball Club and everyone who donated at the tournament. They raised an amazing amount and their support means the world to us.” Thanks and immense gratitude are extended to all local business donors who supported the fundraising raffle with their generosity, as well as the event volunteers and wider supporters. Another memorial tournament is being scheduled for September 2026.
Registrations Open for 2025 Charity Netball Tournament
Penrith Netball Club is proud to announce the return of its annual Charity Netball Tournament, set to take place on Saturday 20th September 2025 at Ullswater Community College, Penrith. The event, organised in partnership with Meerkats Netball Club and Harraby Netball Club, promises a day of sport, community spirit, and charitable giving. Following the success of last year’s event, this year’s tournament will be held in memory of three much-loved members of the Cumbrian netball community: Nichola Jackson, Jodie Hodgson, and Jen Manning. To honour their legacy, all proceeds from team entry fees will be donated to Eden Valley Hospice, a local charity providing compassionate care and support for those with life-limiting illnesses. The tournament is open to teams of up to 10 players, with a minimum age requirement of 14 years. England Netball affiliation is not required. All participating teams are asked to supply an Into-level or above umpire, who will be neutrally assigned on the day. The tournament is designed to be fun and casual, and there is no requirement to have ever played competitively before! Enjoyment is the #1 priority! Further event details, including match schedules and additional fundraising activities, will be shared in the coming weeks. In the meantime, team registrations are now open and can be completed via the Penrith Netball Club website.
Penrith Netball Win North West Club of the Year
Penrith Netball Club have scooped the award for Community Club of the Year at this year’s North West ONE Awards, held near Wigan on 12 July. These awards, run by England Netball and their nine regional management boards, celebrate the achievements of netball volunteers across the country. The initial stages are held at regional level, and it is here that Penrith NC have come away as winners. The Community Club of the Year award aims to recognise clubs that have made an outstanding contribution and a positive impact within their community over the past two years. For Penrith NC, this impact was clear in their award nominations which highlighted the club’s fundraising raffle and tournament. The event, held in September 2024, raised just over £2,700 in aid of Beep Doctors, in memory of Nichola Jackson, a member of the club who passed away suddenly in March 2024. Four club members travelled to the awards and, as part of the winner’s announcement, they were surprised with a video from Dr Theo Weston of Beep Doctors who shone a light on how the funds were used to support the organisation’s life-saving work across Cumbria. Similarly highlighted by NW Netball Vice Chair Phil Owen was the strength of Penrith NC’s Bee Netball and junior sections which have grown hugely over the past two years. The club have also introduced new Summer Sessions, returning for a second year on 14th and 15th August. These sessions provide the opportunity for new and current players, aged 6 to 14, to enjoy the sport during the school holidays, outside of the club’s regular sessions. Upon accepting the trophy, club chair Caroline Tyson expressed that this award is “not just recognition for us, but for what everybody in Cumbria is doing.” Speaking after the event, she thanked all members of the club, as well as parents, coaches, umpires, and wider supporters, stating that, “It takes more than a committee to run a club, and this award is a testament to the community we collectively continue to build each year.” Penrith NC progresses to the national ONE Awards in October to be judged alongside winners from the other eight regions and hopefully take home the national Community Club of the Year award.
PNC Raises £2702 for Beep Doctors
On 26 September, Penrith Netball Club gathered members of its senior section to present a cheque for £2,702 to Dr Theo Weston of Beep Doctors Cumbria. Their fundraising efforts, undertaken throughout August and September involved the organisation of a charity netball tournament and raffle in memory of the late Nichola Jackson, of Penrith, who passed away suddenly in March 2024 along with Rosie Jackson. Nichola was a friend to many, a much-loved member of Penrith Netball Club, captaining the club’s development squad, Penrith Lakers, for several seasons. The charity tournament, held on 07 September at Ullswater Community College in Penrith, welcomed teams from Carlisle as well as Penrith Netball’s own squads to compete at the inaugural event. Competitors and spectators enjoyed a day of glorious sunshine for the tournament, alongside a netball shooting challenge and chuck-a-duck competition. The winners on the day were Penrith Swifts, closely followed by Mavericks Netball from Carlisle who came in second place with the final match of the day being the decider. Penrith Swifts took the game with a score of 14-5. Alongside the charity tournament, Penrith Netball Club organised a fundraising raffle which attracted a huge amount of donations from many local businesses. The club would like to take this opportunity to thank all the raffle donors once more for their generosity, and extend this to everyone who bought tickets as well. Club chair, Caroline Tyson, says “We have been blown away by the support offered to the club over the last few months, and we are beyond proud to have raised such a significant amount of money for the Beep Doctors. The work that the doctors do is invaluable and I’m so glad we can help in this way, especially in memory of our friend Nic Jackson who was such a key member of our netball family.” Moving forward, the club aims to host another memorial tournament in September 2025, and annually thereafter.
Winter League Update
Now we’re starting to get into the ‘rematch’ phase of the season, it’s time for a mid-season table update. The first half of the season has been solid for both Swifts and Lakers with plenty of notes to work on but also lots of greats on which we can build. At this (approximate) halfway point, Swifts are sitting in the top half of the table in 4th place, and Lakers follow them in 8th. Penrith Swifts The Swifts have enjoyed a strong first round of matches, putting lots of goals on the board in the process. Despite sitting in 4th, they have the second-highest number of goals scored across all teams. Their challenge for the second half of the season will be to remain cool and composed in the remaining matches against the top-rated teams of Westmorland Wanderers and Meerkats 1. Their next game will be on 16 April 2024 vs. Stewartry NPT. Penrith Lakers Compared to last season, Penrith Lakers are flying high this time around. This development side has not only shown that they can grow into matches but can also (importantly) win them! A recent highlight was their game against table-toppers, Harraby 1, where they finished only five goals down on the very well-drilled side. As we move into the second half, the Lakers will need to keep pushing on and mastering the basics in each match to ensure they make the most of every second in possession. Finally, we’d like to thank all the league organisers and officials who have volunteered their time so far this season. Here’s to a great second half!
Introducing our 2023/24 League Captains
We are thrilled to announce the appointment of our new league captains for the 2023-2024 season. These captains have been elected ready for the new Carlisle Netball Winter League which begins on Tuesday 26 September 2023. Penrith Swifts will be lead by Eleanor Holme, who enters her second year as the Swifts’ captain. She is one of Penrith’s most capped players and is on course to make her 50th appearance this season. Millie Coates joins her as the team’s vice-captain. She is a fantastic defender who is taking up a leadership role for the first time at Penrith. Penrith Lakers have two co-captains to steer them through the next league season. Sarah Richardson join the Lakers this season following a season with the Swifts as vice-captain, bringing her experience of captaincy to her new squad. Nichola Jackson takes up the mantle of co-captain alongside Sarah. Although she won’t be taking to court this season, Nic’s previous experience with the Lakers will stand her and the team in great stead for 2023-2024. MARCH 2024 UPDATE: Lakers’ leadership team has now changed. Please see the League page for more information. We cannot wait to take to court again with our new squads and captains. The first match, on Tuesday 26 September will be a Penrith derby, as Swifts and Lakers face off against each other, both hoping to take the win to start. For more information on the league fixtures and results, please visit our League page. Eleanor Holme Swifts Captain Millie Coates Swifts Vice-Captain Sarah Richardson Lakers Co-Captain Nichola Jackson Lakers Co-Captain
2023-24 Teams Announced
The team rosters for the 2023-2024 league season have been released today, pending the appointment of team captains. We are very pleased to be entering both Penrith Swifts and Penrith Lakers into the Carlisle Netball League again for the upcoming winter season, starting in September. The team rosters are as follows: Penrith Swifts Sarah Addison Victoria Baker Katie Blackburn Millie Coates Charlotte Ecroyd Jo Haynes Zoe Heathcock Eleanor Holme Caroline Tyson Cara Watson Penrith Lakers Ruth Chamberlain Nat Edmondson Hannah Griffiths Anna Kirkbride Lucy Peile Sarah Richardson Louise Scoffham Nicola Stevenson Emma Studholme Claire Sweeney Jen Threlkeld Claire Turner Both teams are ready and raring to get stuck into the new league season. To keep up-to-date with the latest results, please take a look at the 2023 Winter League page.
Penrith Netball Welcome ITV Border
Interest in our great sport is very much building as we get ready to start the 2023 Netball World Cup. As part of this increased publicity for netball, the world cup and, of course, our England Roses, PNC was thrilled to welcome the team from ITV Border News to training on Thursday. The segment they filmed with us was first broadcast on Thursday 27 July as part of the evening news and is due to be repeated in small part over the weekend. We loved having a chance to show off our club to the wider region, and hope they come back to see us again soon! View this post on Instagram A post shared by Penrith Netball Club (@penrithnetballclub)
Summer Handicap Results Released
The CNL Summer Handicap League has now concluded for another year, and our thanks go to all organisers, umpires, timers, scorers, and of course players for a great season. The final league standings are as follows: Stewartry – 36 points Meerkats 2 – 33 points Meerkats 1 – 31 points Penrith Swifts – 27 points Meerkats 3 – 23 points (369 goals) Harraby – 23 points (368 goals) Mavericks – 20 points Penrith Lakers – 17 points Meerkats 4 – 9 points The final breakdown of points can be seen below, and for the full results of the CNL Summer Handicap, please visit the archive page here. Team Name P W D L GF GA GD Bonus Pts Meerkats 4 8 0 8 345 439 -94 9 9 Harraby 8 4 4 368 344 24 3 23 Meerkats 1 8 6 2 326 270 56 1 31 Meerkats 2 8 6 2 319 288 31 3 33 Meerkats 3 8 3 1 4 369 345 24 5 23 Stewartry 8 7 1 339 294 45 1 36 Mavericks 8 3 5 348 388 -40 5 20 Penrith Lakers 8 2 6 343 399 -56 7 17 Penrith Swifts 8 4 1 3 371 361 10 4 27 Our thanks are extended to all umpires, scorers and officials associated with this summer league. We look forward to hitting the ground running in the 2023 CNL Winter League, starting in September.
2023-2024 Club Renewals Open
All current members should have now received a renewals email – if it hasn’t landed in your inbox, please check your spam first before getting in touch. The email contains lots of information about our move over to Teamo so please give it a good read, and let us know if you have any questions. In line with decisions taken at the AGM, there will be an increase in fees for the 2023-2024 season, and we shall also be moving over to using Teamo for our membership system. Please ask Harriet if you have any issues with either of these points. WAITLIST/NEW MEMBERS: We will be contacting waitlisted players in the next couple of weeks once we have an idea of spaces remaining. Thanks for bearing with us!
