Big time shot for Waikato netballers

Two University of Waikato netballers will get to play alongside the nation’s best at the end of this month. Kelly Jury and Samantha Sinclair, who are both Hillary scholars, have been named in the FAST5 Ferns squad to play in the Fast5 World Netball Series in Melbourne on October 29-30.

The 10-strong team will be captained by Silver Fern Maria Tutaia and coached by NZ U21 team and Silver Ferns Development squad coach Kiri Wills.

Kelly, who is studying a Bachelor of Sport and Leisure Studies, has been playing netball since she was seven years old and says being named in the squad was unexpected but exciting.

“It means so much to me because it's pretty much the next step towards my major goal, which is to make the Silver Ferns. It also makes all the hard work and training worth it.”  

Kelly is also in the Silver Fern Development Squad working towards the World Youth Championships in Botswana next year.

Samantha, who is studying a Bachelor of Management Studies, says she is beyond excited to play in the series.

“It's another step to making the big one [Silver Ferns] so it’s an experience I'm really looking forward to. It should be lots of fun and a really cool week.”

Sam, who has been playing netball since she was six, is looking forward to the FAST5 experience, "playing a new game, different from the old-school netball game", and for the opportunity to represent New Zealand.

The FAST5 game is different from the traditional game of netball, with five players instead of seven, shorter quarters with total game time at 24 minutes, power plays, and super shots. Teams from Australia, England, Jamaica, Malawi and South Africa will compete in the two-day event.