By Elizabeth Winter
Leading netball experts from Australia recently travelled to Samoa as part of the Australian Defence Force Sports Training Program to deliver coaching and officiating education.
The program successfully produced: 18 newly accredited Foundation Coaches, six C Badge umpires, and a major milestone – Samoa’s first B Badge umpire.
As netball continues to grow in Samoa, the demand for skilled coaches and umpires is increasingly vital to support the sport’s expansion.
Supported by the Australian Government and delivered in collaboration with ADF Sports, Netball Samoa, and Team Up, the week-long workshop took a multi-faceted approach providing coaching and umpire training to support the growth of netball at all levels.
The workshop produced a new cohort of accredited umpires and coaches to continue advancing netball in Samoa.Netball Australia Workforce Manager Kim Bailey and National AA Badge umpire Tim Marshall trained and assessed local community leaders including teachers, umpires, and club members to accredit them as coaches and umpires.
Netball Samoa CEO Justine Samu praised the achievements from this workshop as a significant step forward for netball in Samoa, equipping a new generation of officials and coaches with the tools to develop the sport at all levels.
“Not only is this a boost for our associations and community, but also an eye opener for the amazing development opportunities that netball provides,” Samu said.
A FIRST FOR SAMOA
Tosha Papalii became the first person in Samoa to achieve the National B Badge umpire accreditation during the workshop, opening new opportunities for them to umpire higher-level games, and access more advanced umpire development programs.
Papalii’s success is an indicator for what’s to come both for netball in Samoa and more broadly in the Pacific, being only the second person in the region to secure their B Badge, following the success of Litia Rabitu in Fiji last year.
Tosha Papalii was thrilled to become Samoa's first B Badge umpire during the workshop.Papalii thanked Netball Australia’s training experts for their support throughout the week.
“Kim and Tim are two of the best in the sport and they have done a lot of great things for netball in Australia and now they have brought the same energy in Samoa. I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunity,” Papalii said.
“Now I have a B Badge, being the first from Samoa, it’s a huge call and I have a lot of responsibilities within the netball community. I trust in Netball Samoa and the community to continue the collective effort to improve the sport.”
All the participants were eager to learn from National AA Badge and Suncorp Super Netball umpire Tim Marshall, who led the Foundation Umpire Course to equip them with the skills and knowledge needed to be an effective umpire in their communities.
Tim Marshall led 19 participants through the Foundation Umpire Course.Marshall emphasised to participants the significant role umpires play in netball to ensure quality match play.
Topics of discussion throughout included umpiring tools, playing areas, basic rules, communication techniques, stoppages, and game management.
With a mixture of theory and practical work at Tuanaimato Sports Complex, participants enthusiastically applied everything they had learned in the classroom out on court.
Participant Akira Lima commented on how Marshall’s knowledge and level of expertise in umpiring lifted everyone’s confidence and understanding.
“The knowledge provided in the workshop creates confidence in you to make the calls you need to when you’re an umpire,” Lima said.
“This workshop has made me go to the next level with my umpiring, and I will take a lot back to my community.”
Participant Akira Lima praised the workshop for supporting umpires with their decision-making and confidence.STRENGTHENING SAFEGUARDING
Safeguarding is essential in netball, playing a critical role in creating safe and inclusive environments for everyone involved.
Netball Samoa CEO Justine Samu and Country Program Manager Tusi Faasootau-Ale led a session on safeguarding for participants to discuss how it applies within their netball communities.
The session highlighted the role everyone must play, from players and umpires to those in governance, to ensure netball remains a safe and inclusive environment.
Samu emphasised the importance of understanding safeguarding to make a real difference.
“I couldn’t make real change until I truly believed in what I was talking about. I’m looking forward to everyone getting out there and spreading this message, working together to grow this shift in mindset,” Samu said.
CATAPULTING COACHES FORWARD
A vital part of building strong netball teams requires strong coaches – a message reinforced by NA Workforce Manager Bailey as she led participants through the Foundation Coaching Course.
With an Elite Coaching Accreditation and having worked with local communities across Victoria, Bailey brings a wealth of experience delivering coach education.
Bailey's Foundation Coaching Course was filled with plenty of fun and laughter. Bailey emphasised the significance of supporting netball internationally using the knowledge she has acquired throughout her career.
“Netball is a world game. There’s so much talent and potential here in the Pacific,” Bailey said.
“We’re so lucky in Australia to have the opportunities we do, so it’s an important opportunity for us to go out and give back to the international community.”
“We want to make netball competitive around the world so when it comes to the Netball World Cup, we’re playing against people who are fantastic netballers who have had great training and love the sport.”
KNOWLEDGE FOR THE COMMUNITY
To round out their knowledge and skillsets, participants undertook the Basic Principles and Practices of First Aid Response and CPR, as well as Basic Sports Taping, delivered by ADF Sports Training Facilitator Jayden Walsh.
This session aimed to ensure teachers, coaches and club members across Samoa can provide basic first aid to appropriately care for their teammates and respond in critical situations.
The new skills and knowledge gained across the week will equip participants with the foundations to apply their learnings across school, club and community settings.
Participants plan to share workshop learnings with their local communities, clubs and schools. Rachel Hunt-Solomana, Principal of All Saints Anglican School in Samoa, expressed how the workshops have provided useful insights she can share with her community of teachers.
“I’ve not had any formal training as a coach or umpire. My coaching was basically what I learned in secondary school and college, YouTube and some books I found,” Hunt-Solomana shared.
“Just learning what we have this week, it’s really filled in all the blanks that I had in netball. I hope to share this information so we can re-enliven netball and all sports in Samoa.”
Visceta Meredith, President of St Mary’s Sports Club, plans to share her learnings from the workshop with community club members.
“I know it’s going to inspire a player that’s going for that blue national dress, to potentially try multiple pathways, including umpiring, coaching, team management. It’s information that I feel should be shared,” she said.
NETBALL SAMOA’S FUTURE
Off the back of the Samoa Tifa Moana’s roaring success at the PacificAus Sports Netball Series, as well as the 21U Team qualifying for the Netball World Youth Cup, netball in Samoa is entering an exciting period of growth.
By generating a whole new wave of accredited umpires and coaches, Netball Samoa are building a skilled workforce to continue propelling both the standard and popularity of netball in the country.
The new cohort of umpires and coaches will support the ongoing growth of netball in Samoa.National AA Badge umpire Marshall shared his perspective on the promising trajectory for netball in Samoa.
“Umpiring has grown immensely in the Pacific over the past few years. When I first started working in this program, there weren’t really any accreditations in Samoa. The development from when we first started delivering to now is enormous and I think it’s just going to continue to grow,” he shared.
Samu praised the week of education and training as a vital step in making netball a sport for everyone and building a strong future for the game across the country.
“This feels like the next level of where we’re going. We, the Netball Samoa team, are just the head, but the body is the people in our associations, and you are how we’re going to make the change we need,” she said.
Learning and development will continue beyond these workshops, with ongoing opportunities designed to maintain momentum and support the growth of the participants involved as well as future coaches and umpires.
Want to know more about Netball Australia’s international development work? See more here: https://netball.com.au/international-development
