Nelson buzzing ahead of Test Match
September 9, 2016
Students from Nayland College met their Silver Ferns heroes today in Nelson
The city of Nelson is a hive of activity ahead of the opening Test of the New World Netball Series for the Taini Jamison Trophy.
A special meet ‘n’ greet this afternoon at the Trafalgar Centre – the location where history will be made on Sunday night – with both teams was packed with young netballers and their families; many taking the afternoon off work or school to catch a glimpse of their heroes.
Chair of Nelson Netball Centre, Julie Baxendine said the opportunity to host a Silver Ferns Test Match for the first time is fantastic.
“It’s something we identified within our strategic plan quite some time ago that we wanted to bring really high quality Netball to Nelson, to be inspiring for all the players that play here,” Baxendine said.
“We’re a really strong Netball community, so to see it actually come to fruition and to be standing here today and to see the excitement on all those girls’ faces and the mums, and the coaches, and everyone else - is just brilliant.
“It’s really, really heartening and I’m really proud that as a Centre we were able to do it. And we look forward to doing it again!”
The opportunity to host the Jamaican Sunshine in the week leading up to the Test Match has seen the town buzzing.
“I’ve heard from a lot of people ‘ohhh, I saw the Jamaicans’ or ‘oohh, I saw the Silver Ferns’ so that’s really cool,” she said.
“I was really fortunate to be in Jamaica two months ago so it was really nice to develop that relationship with them so that when they got to Nelson they felt welcome and excited about being here.
“All the players, they’re such inspirational role models and everyone is just so excited. I just wish the stadium was twice the size so we could get more people here!”
Baxendine thanked the people of Nelson for getting behind their dream to bring the Silver Ferns to Nelson.
“Bringing a game to Nelson is not something we do lightly and our centre manager, Chelsea has been instrumental in building the relationships with Netball New Zealand and bringing the Silver Ferns here,” Baxendine said.
“We’ve got a great team of volunteers led by Marilyn Milne, our life-member and New Zealand Service Award holder. She’s done a fantastic job of bringing the volunteers together and they all know what they’re doing and it’s all going to run really smoothly on Sunday night, so we’re looking forward to it.”
The opening Test of the New World Netball Series for the Taini Jamison Trophy, played between the Silver Ferns and Jamaican Sunshine Girls is sold out. Fans can catch all the action live on SKY Sport from 7.30pm Sunday night (check local guides).
A special meet ‘n’ greet this afternoon at the Trafalgar Centre – the location where history will be made on Sunday night – with both teams was packed with young netballers and their families; many taking the afternoon off work or school to catch a glimpse of their heroes.
Chair of Nelson Netball Centre, Julie Baxendine said the opportunity to host a Silver Ferns Test Match for the first time is fantastic.
“It’s something we identified within our strategic plan quite some time ago that we wanted to bring really high quality Netball to Nelson, to be inspiring for all the players that play here,” Baxendine said.
“We’re a really strong Netball community, so to see it actually come to fruition and to be standing here today and to see the excitement on all those girls’ faces and the mums, and the coaches, and everyone else - is just brilliant.
“It’s really, really heartening and I’m really proud that as a Centre we were able to do it. And we look forward to doing it again!”
The opportunity to host the Jamaican Sunshine in the week leading up to the Test Match has seen the town buzzing.
“I’ve heard from a lot of people ‘ohhh, I saw the Jamaicans’ or ‘oohh, I saw the Silver Ferns’ so that’s really cool,” she said.
“I was really fortunate to be in Jamaica two months ago so it was really nice to develop that relationship with them so that when they got to Nelson they felt welcome and excited about being here.
“All the players, they’re such inspirational role models and everyone is just so excited. I just wish the stadium was twice the size so we could get more people here!”
Baxendine thanked the people of Nelson for getting behind their dream to bring the Silver Ferns to Nelson.
“Bringing a game to Nelson is not something we do lightly and our centre manager, Chelsea has been instrumental in building the relationships with Netball New Zealand and bringing the Silver Ferns here,” Baxendine said.
“We’ve got a great team of volunteers led by Marilyn Milne, our life-member and New Zealand Service Award holder. She’s done a fantastic job of bringing the volunteers together and they all know what they’re doing and it’s all going to run really smoothly on Sunday night, so we’re looking forward to it.”
The opening Test of the New World Netball Series for the Taini Jamison Trophy, played between the Silver Ferns and Jamaican Sunshine Girls is sold out. Fans can catch all the action live on SKY Sport from 7.30pm Sunday night (check local guides).