By Elizabeth Winter
Coaches from across the Pacific and Australia joined forces at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra for a Coach Development Program led by Australia’s top netball experts.
Held alongside Netball Australia’s 19U camp, the Coach Development Program aimed to accelerate coaches’ knowledge, skills and behaviours to share in the ongoing growth and development of the netball coaching community.
The collaborative learning environment focused on technical, physical, and holistic aspects of athlete and team development.
The workshop was supported by the Australian Government through the PacificAus Sports program, and was led by Australian experts Julie Fitzgerald AM and Jon Fletcher, with support from Stacey Marinkovich, Anita Keelan AM, and Beryl Friday.
Coaches from across the Pacific and Australia learned and grew together at the Australian Institute of Sport.A WEEK OF COLLABORATION
Coaches took part in sessions on athlete wellbeing, leadership, performance analysis, strength and conditioning, and team culture. These topics were integrated with practical on-court sessions, in which coaches had the opportunity to observe training sessions and match play as part of the 19U, 21U, and Diamonds camps.
Head Coach of the Origin Australian Diamonds Stacey Marinkovich hosted a dedicated Q&A session, providing a space for coaches to openly discuss challenges, ideas, and experiences.
Marinkovich expressed how valuable the session was for herself as well as participants.
“The questions you ask continue to help me realise what’s true to me,” Marinkovich said.
“Sharing your experiences and hearing you’re not alone, that’s the strength of learning together.”
Head Coach of the Origin Australian Diamonds Stacey Marinkovich led a Q&A Session with coaches.REFLECTIONS FROM PACIFIC COACHES
Participants from the Pacific included Netball Fiji Baby Pearls Assistant Coach Vaiti Waqatabu. Having captained the Fiji Pearls at the 2022 Singapore Nations Cup, the recently retired player found the workshop insightful as she transitions into her coaching role.
“This week has been an amazing learning environment, very educational. Now I understand the coaching perspective,” she said.
“Before, when I was in the players’ environment I learned to receive information, but this has helped me understand how to provide information to athletes.”
Assistant coach of the PNG Pepes Helen Edwards also valued the opportunity to learn in an elite environment.
“This has been a great opportunity to be among top coaches and experience hands-on training and grow my knowledge as a coach,” Edwards shared.
“I'm going to try and bring portions of it into not only the national team, but also to the community club back in Brisbane.”
PNG Pepes assistant coach Helen Edwards gained insights from experienced Australian coach Julie Fitzgerald AM.LEARNING FROM THE BEST
Participants heard from a range of speakers throughout the week, including AIS sports psychologists and strength and conditioning staff, as well as Netball Australia’s Head of Performance Wellbeing Matt Mulcahy.
To support their analysis of match play and training, participants had one-on-one sessions with Julie Fitzgerald AM, who stands as one of Australia’s most experienced coaches.
“Every coach has a different journey and goals ahead of them,” Fitzgerald said.
“It's been interesting to hear their stories, their unique obstacles, as well as the things that may be their advantage to get to where they want to be.
“I've experienced all stages of netball, I've coached at all different levels so I hope that gives me a bit of background and experience that I can share with others, regardless of the level they're currently at.”
Julie Fitzgerald AM took coaches through post-match debriefs. Netball Tasmania High Performance Coach Jon Fletcher shared his insights from decades of coaching experience, hoping participants walked away from the program with more than strategic learnings.
“Beyond how to build programmes or relate to athletes, the key is giving these coaches the confidence to go back and share ideas,” he explained.
“In the Pacific, they have challenges we don't experience here. So, it’s not just about the learnings but the confidence to recognise ‘oh we can work through these barriers and it's not going to hold back our progress’.
“I really admire the work these coaches do, their time, investment and how much they love the game. It inspires me, it reminds me, we're in a good game, with lots of good people so let's keep helping each other out.”
Jon Fletcher facilitated discussion and learning during sessions at the national 19U training camp.BUILDING SAFE AND INCLUSIVE TEAM CULTURES
The program placed strong emphasis on creating culturally safe environments for athletes and teams. As part of this, coaches took part in a First Nations education session led by Netball Australia’s First Nations Engagement Lead, Beryl Friday.
The session focused on practical ways to create inclusive and equitable spaces across the sport.
Netball Samoa’s Sport Development Coordinator Jordan Lameta shared his learnings on building a safe team culture.
“A key takeaway has been that your players are people before they’re athletes,” Lameta said.
“A lot of the time we expect them to turn up to trainings and perform at a high level, but we don't always think about the things they could be going through at home, work, or school.”
“This week highlighted the importance of getting to know your players, being vulnerable, and creating the space and the environment that they feel comfortable enough to grow as both athlete and individual.”
Australian coaches in attendance included Victoria 19/U Assistant Coach Belinda Lees, who found the knowledge exchange beneficial for her development.
“I could have never anticipated how much I have learned this week,” Lees shared.
“Not only from the presenters across all aspects of high performance, but more than that, the sharing of culture and learning from our neighbours across the Pacific, and our First Nations community, I’ve loved every minute.”
Victoria 19/U Assistant Coach Belinda Lees reflected on her week of learnings and development. LOOKING AHEAD
In addition to technical development, coaches explored the concepts of self-awareness, vulnerability, and emotional resilience when it comes to leading teams.
This sentiment was reflected in the words of Marinkovich.
“So much is out of our control, we’re just trying to maintain the balance,” she said.
“Understanding your own stress responses, building support networks, and knowing your role within an organisation – these will support you as a coach.”
As a result of the workshop, coaches will return to their netball communities with renewed confidence, a broader network, and a deeper understanding of their roles as leaders.
With strengthened connections between coaches and shared ambitions, participants from Australia and the Pacific are now better equipped to take these insights home and continue making an impact in their netball communities, ensuring netball remains strong, innovative and world-leading into the future.
The Coach Development program is supported by the Australian Government through the PacificAus Sports program, an initiative which builds people-to-people links and further strengthens Australia and the Pacific’s close regional ties through a shared love of sport.
Interested in Netball Australia’s international development work? See more here.
