Loughborough hosts fifth ParaNetball Championship

The fifth edition of the ParaNetball Championship took place at Loughborough University’s Netball Centre in June as the tournament continues to go from strength to strength.

PHOTOS BY MORGAN HARLOW

Previously hosted by England Netball in 2019, 2020, 2022 and 2023, the Championship is for athletes with special educational needs and disabilities, including physical, learning and behavioural.

Four schools (Priory Ruskin, Woodlands, St John Payne Catholic and St George’s Academy) and four clubs (Ellesmere Port, Chester and Neston Special Olympics, Sheffield Concord Net4All White, Manchester Thunder ParaNetball Club and Sheffield Concord Net4All Red) entered their respective events in this year’s edition, with the schools playing on 21 June and the clubs competing on 22 June.

Both days started with a warm-up to make sure everyone was ready for an exciting day of netball before England Netball coaches led a fun activities session, including a mix of passing, shooting and more, to help all the participants develop their netball skills.

After lunch, the competition began with all teams going head-to-head with one another in a round-robin before final placing matches.

In the schools event, there was some brilliant netball on show, including an extremely close match-up between Woodlands and St John Payne Catholic, which the former won 6-4.

It was Priory Ruskin who took the title though after an impressive series of performances saw them go unbeaten.

The following day, there was a packed-out balcony of family and friends cheering on all the teams in the clubs event and three of the eight games saw a maximum of two goals separate the sides.

After lots of long bombs and flying intercepts as well as quick through court play in the opening phase of the competition, the stage was set for an Ellesmere Port, Chester and Neston Special Olympics vs. Sheffield Concord Net4All White final.

Ellesmere Port, Chester and Neston Special Olympics had secured a narrow one-goal victory over Sheffield Concord Net4All White earlier in the afternoon and came out on top once again with a 9-3 win.

All of the results and final standings from both competitions are available here.

Both days were topped off with visits from Future Roses Celena Appleby-Prince and Harriet Jones, who presented all the teams with their certificates and medals as well as taking lots of photos, answering questions about their own netball journeys and sharing top tips with the participants.

Congratulations to all the schools and clubs and thank you to all the coaches, team personnel, officials, supporters, volunteers and staff for two fantastic events.

Find out more about ParaNetball and our strategy here.