Penrith Netball Celebrates 20 Years
It may be unlucky for some, but Friday 13th May was quite the opposite for Penrith Netball Club as they reached their 20th anniversary. Having previously operated as Penrith Police Netball, the Club in its current form became ‘official’ in May 2002. Since then, it has grown in strength with the assistance of many volunteers, none so prolific as Lynn Griffiths and Margaret Phillips who had been involved with netball in Penrith since the start. In June 2021, they handed over their reins to a new committee and Penrith Netball Club merged with the town’s Netball Now group (previously Back to Netball). 2022 marks the tenth anniversary of this group. The large-scale celebrations fell on Saturday 14th when the Club invited local adult teams (Harraby Netball and Westmorland Wanderers) to a morning full of friendly competition, followed swiftly by an afternoon Junior tournament for Penrith’s own young players. Both were a great success with lots of quality netball on display. The evening saw both adult and junior members of Penrith Netball Club come together with friends at The George Hotel for their awards dinner and anniversary celebrations. Following dinner, Caroline Tyson (Chairwoman) provided a short review of the year and thanked all Club members for their support and dedication over the past 12 months. Awards were given to the following players: Umpire’s Nightmare Winner Kirsty Yates Runners-Up Nat Edmondson Maureen Luckhurst Most Improved Winner Ruth Chamberlain Runners-Up Jen Threlkeld Nic Hudson Coaches’ Player Winner Katie Blackburn Runners-Up Jane Holme Freya Jamieson-Smith League Awards Winners Victoria Baker Sarah Richardson Runners-Up Eleanor Holme Cara Watson Katie Blackburn Katy Aris Nichola Jackson Players’ Player Winner Cara Watson Runners-Up Jane Holme Eleanor Holme Katie Blackburn At the closing of the speeches, gifts were presented to members of the committee (Caroline Tyson, Harriet Holme & Cara Watson) by other adult players in thanks for their contribution to the Club since their election in June, as well as another gift to the Junior coach, Eleanor Holme. On Monday 16th, end-of-season awards were given to Junior members of the Club, and to the following players: Most Improved Winner Eve Staines (J1) Matilda McTear (J2) Runners-Up Isobel Davis & Layla Dickinson (J1) Peri Watson & Jasmine Laker (J2) Coaches’ Player Winner Rosie Murray (J1) Anna Kirkbride (J2) Runners-Up Carmen Harrington & Charlotte Webster (J1) Penny Robinson & Isla Birch (J2) There is no doubt that this season has been a big one for Penrith Netball, racking up several achievements both on and off-court. In their first outing with a new team in the Carlisle Netball League, they finished third, missing out on second place by only two goals. They were also awarded Cumbrian Club of the Year in November 2021 in a virtual awards ceremony live on BBC Radio Cumbria. They welcomed five new sponsors in Fit2Work Ltd., Alba Travel, Willan Living, Vets4Pets and Penrith Building Society in the same month and raised over £300 for charity in February. The Club hope to build on their winter league success in the coming months as they enter two teams into the summer competition. These matches are due to start on Tuesday 24th May. We look forward to seeing what the Club does next – it is sure to be fantastic!
