Let’s hear it for the Courtside Crew

Having chatted to the self-proclaimed Queen of the Mop Yvonne Williams last summer we caught up with two more Courtside Crew volunteers, Callum Dashfield and Bob Cosgrove, to hear about their volunteering journeys. All three have recently been rewarded for volunteering at more than 25 netball events.

CALLUM DASHFIELD

Callum Dashfield’s love for netball drove him to volunteer at Birmingham 2022, and now his passion has turned into employment

Jo Randall with Callum

Tell us about the Courtside Crew and how you came to get involved in it…

It’s the volunteer team for major events, typically coming together for international series, plus Netball Super League (NSL) events, so the Netball Super Cup this year and the Grand Final – basically anything to do with England Netball or NSL major events. Jo Randall, England Netball Competition and Events Support Lead, oversees all of that, and she’s the reason I got involved. I volunteered for netball at Birmingham 2022 for the Commonwealth Games, and I was very lucky to be on the same team as Jo, doing the ball patrol. And then from that, Jo said it’d be good to get me involved with some England Netball events. And ever since then, I’ve been hooked and involved, in a volunteering capacity, in nearly every event that’s taken place.

What does it involve?

As a crew we do all sorts of things, from fan engagement, to being on the concourses, selling programmes, to helping out with the main event team, and making sure that the ‘back of house’ is sorted. We help make sure the teams are where they need to be, make sure the trophy is in the right place, all sorts of things. It’s a really varied set of tasks.

Why were you drawn to volunteering in netball in the first place? What inspired you to do it?

I’ve always been involved in netball. I coach the game at university level, and I live in Stoke, so Birmingham for the Commonwealth Games was the perfect opportunity. It was right on my doorstep. It was a massive event, and I thought, ‘Why not give it a go? Why not get involved?’. Then from there, I really found the passion. Jo’s so passionate about giving back to the volunteers and making sure they feel appreciated. There’s a lot of stuff that people don’t realise goes on behind the scenes for an event, and you get to be part of that.

How many volunteers do you ideally need for a high-profile international series?

Each day there’s about 30 volunteers doing the various roles, and then we’ve got our core crew, which is about five of us. We will be there the day before, overseeing the event set-up.

The Courtside Crew!

So it’s effectively a team of volunteers that travel around together?

That’s right, yeah. We get different people at different events, so when we’re up in Manchester, we’ll have a slightly different team, but most of it is the same kind of people who will travel from London up to Manchester for the events, because they like being part of the Courtside Crew and Jo has started a rewards scheme, where once you’ve done 25 events, you get recognised for your service. Personally, it’s got me into lots of interesting situations. I meet a lot of interesting people, and it’s a great thing to be involved with.

Would you say volunteering is the lifeblood of recreational sport, and without it, we’d struggle to have a thriving sporting culture?

Absolutely, and from all levels. From right down at the grassroots level – volunteering with your local team, whether it’s as a coach, or a team manager, whatever it is – up to county level, where all the county boards are elected, but they’re still volunteer positions. Without them, the sport wouldn’t run. You can do it at any level, on an international stage or at local grassroots level.

How can the game recruit more people into volunteering?

I think the key way is showing off the opportunities. A lot of people will do it automatically because they want to give back to the sport. And there’s people that I spoke to that went, ‘Oh, I didn’t even know you could do that!’. So it’s just about getting out there, and getting more people to see it, because the more people that know about it, and the more people that speak about it, the better for the game.

What do you like specifically about the culture of netball? What marks it out from the other sports you’ve been involved with?

It’s so friendly and open and welcoming. And that’s what’s so nice, we get new people at every event, and they’re immediately welcomed in. You get to know their names, and you immediately start talking to them. And that’s how it should be. Everyone should feel like they’ve got a place.

All of which has led to you securing your own role with England Netball. Can you describe what your role as Officiating Coordinator involves?

Getting involved in volunteering has led me down this avenue, because the team I now work with at England Netball, I knew already from the events that I’d volunteered at. We’re a small team, and we’re in charge of organising officials, right up to the elite level in national competitions. We make sure there are officials there, be that table officials or umpires, and ensure the logistics and organisation of that is sorted. I’m also the point of contact when international officials come over, liaising with them and making sure that they are in the right place at the right time for the correct training sessions for the various international teams.

Bob with Birmingham Panthers players Gabby Marshall and Sigi Burger

BOB COSGROVE

When did you get involved?

I became involved in 2019 at the World Cup. That was my first event with netball. I had done the Olympics in 2012, but I didn’t realise there were a lot of other opportunities. I was watching the Commonwealth Games in 2018 when England won and they were interviewing somebody afterwards and they said ‘We’ve got the World Cup next year in Liverpool’. I turned to my wife and said, ‘Do you fancy volunteering for that?’ and we did.

You’ve volunteered with your wife a few times?

She’s done the Commonwealth Games and the World Cup. Just one or two big events, she’s too busy with the grandchildren and other things! Volunteering generally keeps me out of her way…

What role do you tend to play at these events?

Largely for netball it’s fan engagement, which is great fun with the fans up on the concourse; helping them with their seats, giving out clappers, directing them here and there and marshalling the queues. Just lately I’ve been doing some ball patrol chaperoning. You get a young netball team, between 12 and 16 usually, coming in and you show them what they’re doing, show them around, teach them what their job is and look after them during the match.

Are your weekends taken up with an event that you’re volunteering for?

It tends to go in waves. I’ve got nothing now until the end of January and I’ve not had anything for a couple of weeks. But I had three weekends on the trot with England playing Jamaica, there was a kayak slalom in Lee Valley then swimming in Birmingham.

What draws you to netball?

When I first met my wife about 40 years ago, she was playing netball. Like the dutiful boyfriend, I used to go along and watch the games! I’d never seen it before and I realised what a great game it is: a fast sport, such a disciplined sport. It’s just great to watch.

What’s the culture like amongst the volunteers?

There’s quite a community. At the World Cup, I realised there were what I call ‘serial volunteers’. They literally go from one event to another. People pass on information, they might send you a link saying, ‘Oh, this is coming up, do you fancy it?’ Particularly with netball, there’s a high percentage of volunteers who are returnees. We know each other, we have dinner. We might meet up for breakfast. There’s a good hard core that you get to know.

Want to join our ever-growing team of England Netball volunteers? Click here!