After a week and a half of action, the Netball World Cup has come to a close – and while England’s Vitality Roses didn’t quite manage to take home the gold, there were plenty of incredible moments to remember. From beating Australia for the first time to making it to the final, the silver medal England claimed was more than well deserved.

The team’s success will have a knock-on effect, too – especially thanks to the matches being shown on live, terrestrial TV. Before the tournament even started, netball was already one of the biggest-growing sports in the UK, with more than 160,000 people taking up the game following the 2020 World Cup.

I was one of these people. Like many women in the UK, I played netball throughout my time at school, but my interest in the sport dwindled as I reached university. It was only when I moved to London in October 2021 that the prospect of playing again began to intrigue me. 

I got into running during the pandemic, and I wanted an excuse to move my body in a more social environment; netball felt like a good fit. Before long, I began searching for a team – and over a year later, I’ve well and truly caught the netball bug. 

Whether you’ve never played before or haven’t stepped foot on a court since school, there’s no denying that trying something new as an adult can be intimidating, to say the least – but if my experience is proof of anything, it’s that putting yourself out there is well worth it.

Getting into netball can also offer a whole host of benefits – and not just related to fitness. So, if England’s success at the World Cup has inspired you to get involved, here are just five reasons why you should consider taking the plunge.  

One of the main reasons I started netball was to meet new people in a fun, relaxed environment – and I certainly wasn’t alone.

I signed up for a social league as an individual player and was paired with a team for my first season. Despite feeling nervous to meet everyone at first, it didn’t take long to form friendships, and I’ve played on the same team with (most of) the same people ever since.

Alongside playing together on a weekly basis, we regularly go to the pub or out for dinner after our matches and have even been trying to organise a team night out, too.

It’s a great opportunity to meet new people, share what’s going on in your life with others and have a laugh at the same time, and the sense of camaraderie that comes from competing against another team makes building that community feel easier than you’d expect. 

When I first started looking for a netball team, I was surprised how many different companies and clubs there were out there. 

While you’ll need to try out for a club if you want to play competitively, there are loads of social leagues located across London if you want to play without any training obligations or pressure – I play with Netbusters.

It does cost – for the upcoming season I paid £57 for 10 games – but spread across 12 weeks (you get two ‘bye’ weeks per season where your team doesn’t play) it doesn’t feel like too much to pay.

There are also a variety of Core Inclusion Clubs (clubs which specialise in disability and inclusion) across the UK, as well as Walking Netball leagues for those looking for something a little less fast-paced. 

Netball tends to be a fast-paced sport, and as such your brain is working a million miles an hour to keep up with everything that’s going on. However, it’s a different kind of mental stress to that you might experience at work – and for me, the opportunity to focus on nothing else but the game at hand is a refreshing break from the demands of daily life.

There have been many evenings when I’m feeling stressed and tired from work and fancied giving netball a miss, but when I force myself to go, I’m always so glad I did.  

Staying motivated to work out can be tough at times, but playing netball means you’re working out without even thinking about it. 

Sure, there will be times when you get tired and out of breath, but you don’t have much time to dwell on the pain when you’re trying your hardest to intercept a pass or shoot a winning goal.

For safety reasons you do have to remove any fitness trackers so you won’t be able to see exactly how hard you’ve worked, but that’s kind of… nice. After all, it’s not often that you spend some time moving your body just for the sake of it.  

Last, but by no means least, netball is fun. It can get intense from time to time, but if you’re playing in a beginner’s or social league, then mistakes and missteps are kind of expected.

I’ve had plenty of laughs since I started playing netball again over a year ago, and I expect to have many more. For the most part, I find the rush of being on the court, playing alongside my friends and moving my body to be one of the highlights of my week – and while I’m nowhere near the level of the England team, it’s fun to be a part of a sport that’s so loved. 

Ready to get started? Here are a few ways to begin your netball journey.

• Sign up to a social league through companies such as Netbusters and Play Netball
• Search on the England Netball website
• Take part in a ‘back to netball’ session
• Find a CIC club using England Netball’s search engine 

Images: Getty