On Monday 14th October one of England Netball’s commonwealth champions visited Swan Netball Club who are based in Eastleigh, to give a training session to the clubs under 14’s age group. Jodie Gibson was a part of the England squad who were crowned Commonwealth Gold Medal champions on the Gold Coast last year beating Australia by one goal in the final. Earlier this year Jodie reached out to her Twitter followers and offered one lucky winner the chance to win a free coaching session. After hundreds of entries it was our Chairperson Sonja Payne, who came out as the lucky winner.

When Sonja found out she was over the moon, and so were the lucky Swan U14’s when they too found out that Jodie would be coaching them. Jodie worked with the girls on their defensive skills, primarily focusing on being hungry for the ball and timing their interceptions, rounded off with some game play to finish to cement these new skills.

The girls thoroughly enjoyed their time with Jodie. After the session Jodie stated that all the girls worked extremely hard, saying it was a pleasure to coach and meet them and wishing the club all the best for the season ahead. Jodie didn’t depart empty handed too, as we presented her with a Swan key ring and flowers to thank her for her coaching visit. Jodie is a truly wonderful, inspiring athlete, and this one gloomy Monday night in Southampton is one that Swan Netball Club U14’s and Coaches will treasure for a long time.