Sunshine Girls resume training tomorrow
Published:Sunday | May 16, 2021 | 12:15 AMRobert Bailey - Sunday Gleaner Writer
After more than a year without any netball activities in the country, Netball Jamaica (NJ) has now received approval from the Government for the Sunshine Girls to return to training this week.
President Tricia Robinson told The Sunday Gleaner that NJ is happy that the Sunshine Girls have been given the approval to train as they continue their preparations for the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, next year.
“I am very happy that the protocols have been approved, and as you know, we have competitions preparing for in October of this year and the girls are looking forward to being back on court, and we are fairly happy that we have been given this approval,” Robinson said.
“We will now have the opportunity to be on court in training and it will certainly go a far way in terms of our preparations for the girls in these upcoming assignments.”
The Sunshine Girls, who are ranked fourth in the world, have been preparing virtually for a tri-nation home series against South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago, which is set to take place in September. The Jamaicans are also scheduled to face rivals England in a three-Test series in November.
No netball competitions
There has been no netball competitions in Jamaica for more than a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Robinson said that the government approval for the Sunshine Girls to return to training has also allowed the resumption of the local leagues in the island.
“We welcome the approval, and we are next looking to have protocols for the leagues approved,” she said. “Everybody wants to be back on court, and there was a lot of work that has gone into making it happen. There was constant dialogue between us and the ministry, so we are certainly happy that we have gotten the approval.
“I certainly want to thank our technical manager, who worked on the documents in conjunction with the ministries of Health and Wellness, and the minister of sports.”