Netball organisations across the country, including Tasmania, are increasingly turning to men's competitions to grow their participation base.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Usually associated as the main women's sport, there has been an increasing push to grow numbers and establish elite level programs for men in the coming years.
READ MORE: TNL competitiveness on the agenda
Netball Tasmania chief executive Aaron Pidgeon said that the organisation would eventually like to see a fully formed state competition similar to the TNL.
"Absolutely, we would like to see a strong under-16s boys' comp operating at either end of the state, and ideally this will lead into a men's comp."
"It would be great to one day add a men's division to state league, as we've seen in some other states in recent years."
As netball seeks to grow its participation base, many states, including NSW, are seeing men's netball as the new frontier.
NSW have launched the Men's Netball NSW MLeague competition in recent years in an effort to develop high-level male players.
Other organisations like Netball Victoria have formed a working group aimed at progressing men's netball, identifying new opportunities and marketing the men's game.
READ MORE: Tasmanian hockey star to refocus
Pidgeon said that men's netball was something that the organisation was hoping to grow in the coming years.
"Men's netball is something that we would like to see grow in Tasmania and we've been working with the Tasmanian Men's and Mixed Netball Association to identify ways to attract new participants," he said.
"We recently ran a high school championship which saw 24 teams of grade 9/10 boys participate from across the state, so we're hoping that might generate a desire for regular participation."
Netball Tasmania's high school netball championships experienced significant growth this year after a year off due to COVID-19. The competition grew from 24 teams in 2019 to 60 this year and saw the state's first boys' high school championship awarded.
Clarence High School defeated St Patrick's College 24-20 to be crowned the inaugural boys' netball champions.
Riverside and Hutchins also featured teams in the final boys' competition to underline the growth in the sport.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark www.examiner.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter: @examineronline
- Follow us on Instagram: @examineronline
- Follow us on Google News: The Examiner