Ambitious netball tour

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32322, 13 June 1970, Page 9

Ambitious netball tour

r £’HE New Zealand women’s netball team has a golden opportunity to perfect its combination and strategy in the 10 weeks of . first-class games before the world tournament begins in Jamaica on December 30. Few teams which represent New Zealand in any sport have had the world

tour which this team will have. It is away for at least 14 weeks, from October 30 to January 22. The team assembles in Wellington for a 10-day training session and fitting on October 19. It will fly to Sydney on October 30 and play a club team and possibly an Australian national side.

It will play two games in Singapore during a two-day stay and then pass through Hong Kong, Teheran, Athens, Rome, Paris, Amsterdam (where, another game may be arranged) and on to England for a three week tour of games. The team will spend at least a night at all the points on the route.

In England, the conditions will be far different from Jamaica. It will be mid-winter and although some games must be played indoor, some will still be played outdoor. At least one game will be played against England. Before the team leaves for the world tournament from England, team members will have 10 free days in London. It might not be the best place to have the break for, after the English tour, the players should have reached a high level of combination and the break could destroy some of it.

They leave London on December 17 to fly to Bermuda, Barbados and the Port of Spain where they will play other teams entered in the tournament. The tournament will be held at Kingston from

December 30 to January 12, but the team will not have more than a. full day in the city before the tournament begins. New Zealand will defend its title against at least 13 other teams, mainly from within the British Commonwealth. The homeward journey, although slightly shorter, will be just as varied. From Kingston, the team will travel to Mexico City, and Acapulco, then to Tahiti and Fiji where the last game on the tour will be played. The tour is expected to finish on January 22, but it might be even longer. The cost of the tour will be met by levy from each team in the. New Zealand Association and all but $BOOO of that amount has been raised already. The players themselves are expected to raise an additional $2OO each towards the cost and to meet both amounts a national netball day will be held on June 27. Every player in New Zealand (there are more than 45,000 players) will attempt to gain a sponsor and in the ordinary weekend competition games the goal scores will determine how much can be raised.