Newbury Juniors Netball Club welcome a return after extended Covid-19 break

Young netballers have been enjoying being back on court - as their club celebrates a belated 30th birthday.

Newbury Junior Netball Club, which is run by volunteer coaches, was due to celebrate the milestone last year, but Covid restrictions saw the cancellation of much of its season.

The club has teams competing in the Berkshire Junior Netball League at Under 11, Under 12, Under 13, Under 14 and Under 16 levels.

But last year the league was unable to take place and now, after an extended break, the girls are enjoying being back on the courts and taking part in competitive netball.

Head Coach, Helen Thompson, said: "After such a long break it’s great to see all the girls really enjoying being back.

"We currently have six teams - and this weekend we have our two Under 16 teams, Under 12s and Under 13s playing their last fixtures of the year on Sunday at St Neot's School, in Eversley and Wellington College."

Having not been able to compete, or train consistently, for the past 18 months has meant a tough start to the season for all the age groups, but the club’s coaches have been impressed by the determination of the girls and the huge improvements they have made since netball restarted back in September.

After the sudden end to the 2019/2020 season back in March 2020 the Under 16s, Under 11s, Under 13s and Under 14s all finished at the top of their leagues ,which was a fantastic achievement for such a small club.

Training and league games will resume again in January after a Christmas break, with the teams hoping to continue to build on the progress they have all made already this season.