Golden memories

With thoughts turning to the 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, we spoke to Vitality Roses Specialist Coach Jo Harten MBE who was one of the stars who won gold in the Australia in 2018. Jo talked to us about that astonishing success and how she sees this tournament and the future of the game.

What are your standout memories of Gold Coast 2018? Talk us briefly through both the semi-final and the final, both incredible one-goal wins.

I don’t have a specific single memory. I just remember the team looking and feeling super connected. So everything we did, we did together. We would go to the dining hall together. We were always walking around together, supporting each other. And I remember having this sense of pride that as a united group of 12 of us, being in it together and believing we could take on any opposition and we’d have each other’s backs. And then when we got to the semifinal against Jamaica, we were probably more nervous for that game because we felt it was just such a great opportunity to beat a team that we’d beaten recently and then get into our first ever Commonwealth Games final.

So there was a lot of nerves in that game. We probably didn’t play anywhere near how we wanted to because we were so uptight because we knew what it meant. And the relief, 20 years of relief when I sunk that goal on the buzzer was that we’d finally done what we’d spoken about for so long. And then getting to the final, I remember having a lot more freedom because we’d made it past that hurdle. We could just play our own way, have fun. And that’s what we did. We didn’t let nerves get in the way. Obviously, it was a super-tight game, but we just stuck to the process, stayed connected like we had been, and then tried to enjoy the moment, which ended up in Helen scoring the last goal and us all celebrating forever!

What were the key reasons for the Vitality Roses win back then in your view? In the pool matches, the Diamonds had beaten South Africa by 22 goals, Jamaica by 21, then New Zealand by 21 in the semi, the Silver Ferns’ biggest ever defeat at a major tournament. How do you overcome a team like that? This was England’s first ever major final, so was it almost a free pass with the pressure off?

I think the key reasons were multifaceted, but a few would be that a lot of us were playing our netball out in Australia and had been in New Zealand in previous years, so we were used to the styles of play. When we came up against them, we knew how to pass around them. We knew how to shoot over them, how to win ball off both Australia and New Zealand. So those individual experiences really came together for us at the right time. And then I guess on top of that, we did have a sense of confidence and belief that we had the right 12 people in the room. We had great combinations and coverage of every position on the court, which meant everyone got some good game time. But we also had belief in our game plan.

And we had belief in each other. And I think that really started when we beat New Zealand in the pool game. We had never got to that stage of beating a top-ranked team in the pool before. So that gave us the confidence to really hang onto that belief and go all the way. And I think that’s what spurred us on in the end.

Was the 2018 squad in general aware of the weight of history, of all those who had played for England before you? And what has the celebration of 100 years of England Netball as an organisation meant to you?

We definitely knew the weight of the legacy of being an English Rose and all those players that had gone before us playing for England who hadn’t had the opportunity to do what we wanted to do and were about to do. So when we won, we kind of knew it was for more than just the 12 of us in the changing room. It was for everyone who had put on a dress before us and who had paved the way. And there were so many players that we’d been close to, that we thought had had the talent to win medals before, but it maybe hadn’t been the right time for them in an England dress.

And I think that links to what it means for England Netball to reach its centenary, it’s a show of all of the people who have had the passion and care for the game within England who have put their hand up in the moments that might go under the radar. So fighting for the right to play in front of bigger stadiums, showing up on a Saturday morning in the pouring rain. The netball community in England is just amazing. And I think that culminates in the centenary that it’s about the people and it’s always been about the people in the organisation, within the netball community in England. It’s the people that really care so much about England Netball, and are such a great credit to the sport and England Netball itself.

“When we won, we kind of knew it was for more than just the 12 of us in the changing room. It was for everyone who had put on a dress before us and who had paved the way. ”

What will success look like for the team this year in Glasgow and does the games happening in England Netball’s centenary year add any additional poignancy to them?

Look, I think success in Glasgow has a variety of lenses. The team, facing adversity with coaching changes in the build-up, will show how resilient the group of athletes that get selected are. And I think within that, success can look different for individuals. Making a first Commonwealth Games team will be a massive success for some athletes. And I think with this team, there will be a weight of expectation to make the final and that’s what success will need to look like.

But I think also embracing the moment. It’s a home games of sorts within the UK and you have to embrace those opportunities. They don’t come around every four years. And embracing the legacy of putting on the dress for your country, knowing it’s about more than just your sport, you’re representing other sports, you’re representing a whole Commonwealth nation. It’s more than just you. And I think success looks like wearing the dress with pride when they’re on the court, but for the support staff as well, it’s supporting the athletes to give 100 per cent throughout every single game of that tournament and letting our athletes really represent the nation with pride and with no pressure on their shoulders

“I think it’s a game that brings communities together, a sport that has sustained women in particular for so many years.”

When you retired, it was said that you are a real student of our game who will continue to drive the sport forward in the years to come. On that note, where do you see netball going over the next century?

Yeah, I love being described as a student of the game! I obviously had a long playing career and now I’m venturing into the coaching space and I love thinking about netball as more than just a ball sport. I think it’s a game that brings communities together, a sport that has sustained women in particular for so many years. And I’m proud to say that as a past player, the sport has given me opportunities to shine, not just in netball, but in my personal life as well. And I think if I look to the next 100 years of England Netball, I would love to see the sport grow. I would love to see the inclusion of many, many more people, more communities, more players to the game. And I would love it always to be a game for everyone and I’d love to see that side of the sport flourish over the next hundred years.