Bullants Netball Club Inc.

Hi Bullants Families,

Just checked the weather forecast and, along with the very cold temperature and wind, it looks like we’ve got more rain headed our way. To ensure we help everyone to stay safe and healthy, training is cancelled today.

Looks like it will be cold but sunny on Saturday, so we’ll see everyone then. In the meantime, stay warm and dry!!

Bullants Committee

Hi Bullants families

We are heading into Week 3 of the 2019 Winter Season. SCNA will have a close look at results after this weekend to see if there should be any adjustments to the divisions teams have been nominated into. Look out for information about that in the next week or so.

With the season underway we thought it would be good to have a reminder about the Bullant’s club values and expectations. This will help to ensure the season is a success for all.

Umpires

Without umpires we cannot play. All umpires at SCNA are volunteers, we as a Bullants community need to appreciate the time and effort they put in to allow us to play.

As players and coaches we understand that there can be frustration if we feel the umpiring is not to the standard you would wish. However, we should always remain courteous when communicating with an umpire.

A reminder, players, coaches and supporters should not call out infringements. If there is a need for clarification from an umpire about their interpretation of the rules then the appropriate process is for the team captain to approach the umpires during a break of play (¼, ½ or ¾ time) to ask a question. If that doesn’t resolve the issue then the next step is to ask one the umpire coordinators for a clarification (they wear the pink vests)  or the netball convenor (yellow vests) for that time slot, either during the game or immediately afterwards.

Most of the umpires in the junior time slots are beginner umpires and we need to show patience as they develop their skills. These umpires are participating in an umpiring skills development course which includes the practical element of learned during games. We encourage coaches to give feedback as needed to the umpire coordinator who is leading the program so that they can use the feedback to support the umpires development and, perhaps, adjust their program. It is always inappropriate for coaches and/or supporters to talk direct with the umpires.

Remember: players play, coaches coach, supporters cheer and umpires umpire.

Coaches and Players

As a club we are very lucky to have coaches who volunteer to guide our teams. Our coaches’ responsibilities include helping our players develop netball skills, getting players on court and actively observing games so that they can prepare training plans for further skills development, communicating with players in a firm and positive manner. We have a number of coaches who are either new to our sport or new to coaching and we thank them for volunteering for this vital role. All other coaches in the association are also volunteers and, regardless of whether you agree with their coaching style, we expect everyone associated with Bullants to communicate respectfully with the coaches, players and supporters of other teams.

It is the players’ role to ensure they actively participate in all training sessions, pay attention to what your coaches say and try to implement what they are teaching you and be respectful to your coach and team members. Players should stay on the team bench during the game if they are not on court, unless the coach has asked you to warm up.  It is also important that you understand that coaches will have prepared training plans and game plans, so you may not be able to do your preferred training activities or play in your preferred positions all the time. I would encourage you, or your parents, to have a friendly discussion with your coach about your goals if you don’t feel these are being met. Remember, however, netball is a team sport and coaches need to take account of other team members’ needs as well.

Some of our younger players need to remember that the only time they should leave the team bench on game day is if they need to use the toilets or to warm up. We ask parents of our younger players to support the club in this.

Supporters

The club continues to be a success through good parental and other support. So thank you to all the parents, grandparents and other supporters that come to training and our games. In particular thank you to those who have taken on the manager role for our younger teams. It is a great help to the coaches, allowing them to focus on the players.

We love to hear our supporters cheering us on from the side line. But please make sure that it is good-natured and shows good sportsmanship for the opposing team. Remember, coaches coach and supporters cheer, so please don’t call out instructions to your children as it can become confusing, especially for younger players.

Don’t forget that SCNA has adopted the Netball Australia rules around team benches. Team benches are made up of the players, coach/es, manager and scorer. All other supporters should be on the opposite side of the court. This is a new feature of Saturday netball and we as the largest club at SCNA should get behind this initiative. It is designed to help the coaches focus on the players and provide space for the scorers and umpires to do their part free from too much distraction.

Summary

The Bullants community, through our collective effort, provides a safe and supportive environment for all our players, coaches, umpires, managers, supporters and officials to enjoy the game of netball.

Thank-you for taking the time to brush up on our values and expectations.

Bullants Committee

Hi everyone,

Hope you felt good after the first week of games last Saturday, and were able to work on improvements at training on Wednesday.

We are playing again tomorrow, weather permitting. Speaking of weather, the SCNA wet weather policy is below for your information.  We will endeavour to communicate via the blog as soon as possible if we hear from SCNA that games have been cancelled, but your best bet is to look on the SCNA website as that’s where we will get our information. Here is the link: http://scna.act.netball.com.au/

Assuming we are proceeding, Cherokee are on canteen duty from 10.50 – 12.00. Please ensure you support your team coach/s and manager by assisting in the canteen if your daughter plays for Cherokee.

As always, look for a committee member if you have any questions on Saturday.

Play well and have fun!

SCNA WET WEATHER POLICY.

• The winter netball season is relatively short (14 scheduled weeks of play). SCNA has well maintained All-Weather courts, and therefore games can be played in wet weather. Ultimately the final decision as to whether a player takes the court is the decision of the parent/player. If a parent/player feels that it is too cold/wet for them to take the court it is their decision.

• It is the expectation that games will be played in wet weather on Saturdays and as such all teams should attend ready to play. The games on the grass can be relocated if the grass is deemed too wet.

• However, as an Association, we recognise that we have a duty of care to provide a safe playing environment and, as such, the relevant Chair may cancel the game if it is raining consistently and water is pooling on the courts.  

• Game cancellations will be made for individual competition levels by the individual Chairs. Unfortunately this decision may not be made until the last minute.

• This advice will be posted on the website and a message will be left on the telephone (again, this would possibly be at the very last minute).

• Cancellations will NOT be advised on the radio (due to confusion with District names).

Welcome back from school holidays (well those that get them).

Thank-you to all the volunteers who have helped so far in the season. Most of the start-up phase is complete and we can now look forward to our first games this Saturday. You can check the SCNA websit for the time and court details – they will also be posted on the window of the pavilion on Saturday.

Training will be on at the usual times this Wednesday. Remember to pick up any uniforms you have ordered.

Please arrive 30 minutes before your game time on Saturdays to warm up properly with your team. Have nails short, hair tied back, no jewellery and appropriate uniform. 

Each team needs a manager. If your team doesn’t have one yet, please consider volunteering and let your coaches know who you are.

Each team will need to provide volunteers for activities on Saturday from time to time – this is a part of being in the SCNA competition.

This week we have:

– Chinook on set up – you need to provide 3 volunteers at 8.15 to set up the courts (pole wrappers/put bins out etc).

– Kiowa canteen at 11.50-1pm, 2 volunteers needed

– Dakota canteen at 12.50-2pm, 2 volunteers needed

– Shawnee canteen at 2.50-4pm, 2 volunteers needed

SCNA is starting the junior umpiring course this week. If you are interested please contact bullantsnetball@gmail.com and our umpire coordinator can help connect you. There will also be an umpiring tent at the court on Saturday for you to ask any umpiring question you may have – they are always looking for people to help/train etc.

A reminder, if it is raining on training night, please check this bullants blog for cancellation notice – otherwise it is training as usual. If it is raining on Saturdays – please check the SCNA site as they will notify the community first before we can do it on our blog site.

Any questions: bullantsnetball@gmail.com or talk to one of the committee members at training and on Saturday.

Hello,

Teams were finalised at training on Wednesday night.  Thank-you for your patience as we worked to accomodate all the moving parts.

An email will be sent shortly setting out team names, composition and coaches.

Each team will require a manager – so please consider taking on this role for your teams.

SCNA have decided not to hold grading sessions this year – so we do not have grading on 6 and 7 April as previously indicated.

Instead, the club has been asked to nominate teams into divisions and SCNA will review the balance of grades after 3 weeks.

Our first game will be Saturday 4 May and we will let you know when the fixtures are up on the SCNA site.

If you have not purchased uniforms please do so ASAP. You can collect uniforms on Wednesday night.

Any questions please send to bullantsnetball@gmail.com.

Bullants Committee

We will have training as usual this Wednesday.

The teams are coming together and we hope to finalise them soon.

A reminder to get your uniform order in as soon as possible so we can make sure they all arrive prior to the start of the season.

A second reminder that once we have teams allocated we will be looking for team managers for all the teams. This is not a difficult job and does not require any special knowledge.

Mums/older sisters – we have a few places in the ‘older peoples’ team in seniors division 2. If you have been thinking about giving it a go – you would be welcome.

Once again, any questions please contact us via email: bullantsnetball@gmail.com

Hello to all Bullants players and families,

Well done to all the players who came to our first training on Wednesday. It was a lovely evening to get our hands back onto netballs for the start of the season.

Keep those registrations coming. Note that registrations for juniors and inters close THIS SUNDAY – 24 February. Seniors – you get an extra week.

It helps us enormously if we know how many players we have as early so we can organise coaches/umpires and the like.

The link is: http://bullants.act.netball.com.au/Winter-competition.aspx?rw=c

Remember, if you haven’t registered by the cut-off date of 24 February we cannot guarantee you a place in a team.

Next week we will start grading which will go over a few weeks. We realise that some players will be away for school camp and we will take that into account.

A reminder that training times are fixed for the season:

5.30 – 6.30 : NetSetGo SET, JuniorsGO & Juniors

6.30 – 7.30 : Intermediates

7.30 – 8.30 : Seniors

We look forward to seeing you there.

A reminder that SCNA is running a compulsory coach’s briefing on Wednesday 10 April at 7.00pm. They have not yet determined the location, but once we have that information we will advise you. If you are planning to coach this year, please keep this date free.

Calling all aspiring umpires

We are still looking for umpires for this winter netball competition. Training will be provided through the SCNA Junior Umpire program for those younger players who are interested in learning how to umpire, or improving their umpiring skills. Bullants will provide support for parents or senior players who are interested in umpiring. Please contact Julie, our umpire coordinator, on bullantsnetball@gmail.com if you are interested in umpiring during the winter season.

If you have any questions just send us an email at bullantsnetball@gmail.com

Bullants Committee

Hi Bullants Families,

Some of you had advised that the link for registering for the NetSetGo NET program being run by SCNA was not working correctly. We have fixed the link and you should be able to register for the NET program now.

Let us know of any more difficulties at bullantsnetball@gmail.com.

Bullants Committee

Hello to all Bullants players and families.

Keep those registrations coming

We have had over 50 people register  for the 2019 winter netball season…… a good effort so far.  The committee is trying to identify just how many coaches we are going to need this season, and until everyone is registered it’s very difficult for us to do that. So please get on line and register as soon as you can. The link is: http://bullants.act.netball.com.au/Winter-competition.aspx?rw=c

Remember, if you haven’t registered by the cut-off date of 24 February we cannot guarantee you a place in a team.

First training session for 2019

This Wednesday, 20 February, is our first training session for 2019. The objective is to get everyone to the courts, get balls in hands and blow away some of the cobwebs!! This is also an opportunity to try on uniforms if you have outgrown your old one or if you are new to our club. We will also have some people there to help with registrations if you are still having difficulty. The times for training are:

5.30 – 6.30 : NetSetGo SET, JuniorsGO & Juniors

6.30 – 7.30 : Intermediates

7.30 – 8.30 : Seniors

We look forward to seeing you there.

Save the date

This year SCNA is running a carnival-style grading for all Juniors, Intermediates and Seniors competitions on 5-6 April. All players need to be available for the grading carnival, as follows:

Friday 5 April                  6.00pm – 8.30pm – Seniors

Saturday 6 April             9.00am – 2.00pm – Juniors

9.00am – 3.00pm – Intermediates

The  times are only indicative at this stage and will depend on how many teams are nominated for the various levels of competition. We will give you more information on this closer to the day. If you already know that you cannot participate in the grading carnival please let us know asap.

SCNA is also running a compulsory coach’s briefing on Wednesday 10 April at 7.00pm. They have not yet determined the location, but once we have that information we will advise you. If you are planning to coach this year, please keep this date free.

Calling all aspiring umpires

We are still looking for umpires for this winter netball competition. Training will be provided through the SCNA Junior Umpire program for those younger players who are interested in learning how to umpire, or improving their umpiring skills. Bullants will provide support for parents or senior players who are interested in umpiring. Please contact Julie, our umpire coordinator, on bullantsnetball@gmail.com if you are interested in umpiring during the winter season.

If you have any questions just send us an email at bullantsnetball@gmail.com

Bullants Committee

Hello Bullants families.

It is almost winter netball season time and Bullants is looking forward to yet another successful year. Your committee has been hard at work preparing for the 2019 Winter Netball Competition. Following is the information you need to join a Bullants team for the winter season at Deakin.

TIMING

South Canberra Netball Association (SCNA ) has changed some of the times this year – so read carefully. The proper season will start on 4 May, the first Saturday of Term 2. This timing is good for everyone as it means we can complete our summer commitments and focus on netball. It also means we have more time to grade our players, teams can train together and we can work on our fitness before competing.

The key dates are:

The regular season will continue through to the last Saturday in August, followed by three weeks of finals.

REGISTRATION

ALL THE REGISTRATION AND COMPETITION DETAILS are on the WINTER COMPETITION page [Link].

If you are having problems with the registration process please email us at bullantsnetball@gmail.com.

We anticipate entering teams in all grades: NSG Set, Juniors, Inters and Seniors.  The number of teams we enter will be depend on the number of players that register and the number of volunteer coaches and umpires.  All players are required to attend training which is held on a Wednesday evening.

There has be an increase in the registration costs for the 2019 Winter Competition. This is partly an increase in the fees charged by SCNA, Netball ACT and Netball Australia, and also a slight increase in the levy we charge to cover umpire payments, new equipment etc. Should any player experience financial difficulties in paying the registration fees please contact us and we can discuss a payment plan.

VOLUNTEERS

Bullants is fully managed by volunteers, and we cannot run the club without coaches, umpires and managers, so we’d appreciate if you would consider taking on one (or more) of these roles, information about which is below.

Coaches

If you have coached previously you can expect to hear from our coach coordinator, Heather Bond, about your interest in coaching in 2019.

We are also looking for new coaches, both from our current player cohort and from our parent group.

Players – coaching is a great way to build your own netball skills as it forces you to think about how to develop netball skills in others. It is also such a thrill to see kids you’ve been coaching when they “get it”.

Parents/adults – obviously we would love for some experienced netballers to consider coaching our teams, but even if you aren’t overly familiar with the rules of netball and are interested in coaching, we would love to hear from you. One of our objectives for 2019 is to develop a coaching structure where we pair a player with good netball experience with a parent/adult who can provide structure and behaviour management for the team. This is especially important for the younger teams and younger player/coaches.

If you are interested in coaching or getting more information please contact Heather Bond at habond@hotmail.com. If you are planning on coaching this season then we’d love for you to participate in the grading of players into teams, starting on 27 February.

Umpires

Games cannot be played if we don’t have umpires to officiate. We are looking for players and parents who may be interested in joining our umpire team. Bullants will provide you with support as you commence your umpiring career, should you need it which, along with the SCNA junior umpire program, should provide enough skill development for our umpires that they feel confident to manage their allocated games. We will also assist those umpires who are interested in progressing to get their badges.

We know that umpiring can be daunting, so we will ensure that umpires are allocated to matches based on their skill level. An added incentive could be that we will pay you for every game you umpire at the following rates:

No experience – $10
Non-badged – $15
C Badge – $20
B Badge – $25
A Badge – $30

We are also looking for people who can act as mentors/coaches for our umpires. So if you are an experienced umpire you may wish to consider helping us with this role.

If you are interested and would like more information about umpiring for Bullants please contact Julie on bullantsnetball@gmail.com.

Managers

Every NetSetGo, Junior, Intermediate and Senior (school girl) team will need a manager. The role is not onerous, but it lets the coach focus on skill development and getting the players on court each week. The role of the manager is:

• Organise the team’s fruit roster (probably not required for the seniors);
• Manage the team’s rostered turn in the canteen. This should probably only happen twice in the season and it is expected that all families will assist with this, but the manager will coordinate;
• Ensuring there is someone available to score each game. This may mean a roster, or someone may volunteer to do this. It’s up to each team manager to decide that.

Once we have the team lists finalised we will be back in touch seeking volunteers, but wanted to give you time to consider whether this might be a role you could take on.

 PIERCING

This week marks the end of PIERCING season, as it is 6 weeks until the SCNA grading carnival.  Please be mindful of this if considering a piercing.  Players are not able to take the court with piercings in and they cannot tape them.  This is mandated by the Official Rules of Netball.  See Section 1.4.

 UNIFORM

Got uniform that you want to give away or sell?  If you wish to donate it just bring it to the pavilion on Wednesday 20 February between 5-6 pm.  If you wish to sell it, create a sign with your uniform details including the size and price you want for it along with your contact details.  Then pin it up onto the noticeboard outside the Umpire room.

So spread the news and get your friends together.  We are looking forward to seeing you all back at the courts. If you are able to help or have any queries about anything at all please email us at bullantsnetball@gmail.com.

2019 Bullants Committee