By Marcus Uhe
Junior netball in the South East is set to be the biggest beneficiary of the partnership between the developing South East Premier Netball League (SEPNL) and Outer East Football Netball (OEFN).
In a joint statement from representatives of both organisations on Tuesday 16 January, including OEFN Chief Executive Brett Connell and Netball Coordinator Matt Blanchard, and Lani Mannays and Dean Ziesler from the SEPNL, it was announced that a junior competition would be formed featuring teams from both competitions.
This would allow for “stronger competition and pathways into the relative senior club grades,” the statement read.
“South East Premier Netball League (SEPNL) and Outer East Football Netball (OEFN) are pleased to announce that following a number of productive meetings, they will be joining forces in 2024 and partnering to support and develop community netball further in the South East region of Melbourne,” the statement said.
“This junior competition will be provided competition management and administrative support by OEFN, in partnership with SEPNL.
“While a number of details still need to be worked through, both parties agree that working together, in good faith and for the good of the game, it will bring longer term benefits to community netball in the region.”
Junior netball fixtures for 2024 are yet to be released.
Clubs that fielded junior sides in 2023 included Narre Warren, Pakenham, ROC, Beaconsfield, Berwick and Hampton Park in the U13s and U15s, while the U17 Blue competition included clubs from the Yarra Valley such as Wandin, Mt Evelyn, Olinda Ferny Creek and Seville.
Beaconsfield, Hampton Park, Berwick, Cranbourne and Berwick Springs have all committed to playing in the SEPNL in 2024, with Beaconsfield and Berwick departing OEFN’s senior netball competition.
Further affirmation of the new league’s emergence came on Tuesday when it announced it had secured affiliation with Netball Victoria.
The decision was made after “careful consideration of the benefits and opportunities” affiliation will bring to stakeholders, such as players, supporters and clubs, the SEPNL Board said in a statement.
Key benefits of affiliation for the league include accessing more support and resources from Netball Victoria, increased exposure through participation in state-wide competitions, and fostering collaboration amongst other netball competitions.
“We believe that this affiliation will be beneficial for all parties involved; our league members, clubs, players and supporters; Netball Victoria; other state-wide associations; local media outlets; schools; businesses; community organisations; etc,” the SEPNL Board’s statement said.
Netball Victoria declined to comment.
