The financial struggle facing many of world’s best netball teams has been brought into sharp focus with the governing body of Uganda, the world number 13, running events where national players wash cars for $22 per vehicle just so the ‘She-Cranes’ can make the Netball World Cup, where they are a realistic chance of making the top eight.
Uganda, a nation which many major netball administrators see as the potential new powerhouse, say the $220,000 given to them by their government is not enough and have resorted to the drastic action to fully fund the trip.
Uganda’s football president Moses Magogo – among others – wrote on Twitter: “We cannot sink lower. National Netball Team going to the World Cup and players washing cars to get preparation money! In my view we rather not present the team to the World Cup than humiliate ourselves to this level. Both government and whoever came up with this idea should think again.”
It is not the only tale of hardship. Spending at least 10 days in Sydney, one of the world’s most expensive cities, is a tough task for nations where the average salary is often only a few hundred Australian dollars a month.
Take world number five, the dazzling Malawi Queens, from one of world’s poorest countries according to the IMF. They don’t have the money to pay for any practice matches leading up to the tournament and currently players are training on asphalt, outdoor courts and do not have access to a gym.
Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan national side hasn’t played any international matches since last year.
Perhaps what is even more astounding is just how good some of these sides are. Malawi almost upset world number two, New Zealand, at last year’s Commonwealth Games. The Silver Ferns have access to gyms as well as sport scientists from various disciplines and most of the team is filled with players who are (or very close to being) full-time professional athletes.
It is the Jamaican national side though which continues to punch well above its weight. Another side which often practices outdoors, Jamaica is a small island nation with just a few thousand registered players (as opposed to Australia which has 360,000), but the athletically gifted and increasingly skilled Sunshine Girls have finished in the top four at every major world netball event since 1991. The Jamaicans are one of only a handful of sides to have beaten both the Australian Diamonds and the Silver Ferns.
The Sunshine Girls beat England to take bronze at last year’s Commonwealth Games, and could cause a few upsets again this year. But the team, which has been unable to afford tours to play against the Diamonds and Silver Ferns since 2011, is asking for public donations to make August’s Netball World Cup.
Malawi, officially the most successful sporting team the East African nation of 16 million people has ever produced, are a good bet to finish as high as fifth or sixth of the 16 teams contesting this year’s tournament.
Queens coach Peace Chawinga-Kalua told Guardian Australia the team could achieve even more if they had money for better preparations.
“We rely mainly on government funding… we don’t have indoor training facilities” she said. “This means if it rains we have to cancel training. We have no access to a gym like our fellow countries do, and so we rely on club games to get fitness. As a result we often struggle when it comes to fatigue and endurance.”
It’s a similar tale for the Zambian side, who come into the Sydney World Cup as an unknown quantity, having not played outside of Africa since 1999. At club and community level, netball is often played on makeshift grass courts.
Yvonne Mentor, mother of England captain Geva, spent time in Zambia last year to assist in their netball development and told Guardian Australia she had sourced donated tracksuits in the country’s colours for the event.
It’s tricky to know where the solution lies for the perpetual problem of money shortfalls in international netball. The Australian Federal Government recently made a significant cash injection of $250,000 to ensure these teams make the event – but apparently this doesn’t go far enough.
The International Netball Federation says their game is played by 20 million women across 75 countries. “Our challenge is to identify commercial partners who have the vision to buy into this success story, help us support the African teams and demonstrate their commitment to corporate social responsibility,” CEO Clare Briegal told Guardian Australia.
“We see this as an exciting opportunity – it is a challenge, but then we rise to challenges, and make the most of opportunities, and we are confident those partners are out there.”
Netball’s popularity as a spectator sport is rising across the many western nations, and the potential to tap a bigger global audience might hold the solution to the lack of cash. International netball is a bigger seller and a bigger TV rater than even the semi-professional ANZ Championship; this despite the fact there is a lack of depth in international teams. A few strong mid-tier teams like Uganda, Malawi, Tanzania Trinidad, USA, Samoa and Fiji would give the game even more.
