Clubbies 2018: Building a successful sporting association

A few (literal) road blocks have never been an obstacle to success for the City of Sydney Netball Association (CSNA).

Under pressure from Sydney’s ever-expanding traffic snarls and parking problems, CNSA was punted from Moore Park following the arrival of Fox Studios.

Yet somehow the association has managed to thrive and lay the foundation for future champions.

In its 50th year, the Clubbies 2017 Sports Association of the Year will have plenty of opportunity to reflect on its extraordinary contribution to Australian netball.

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Inside Sport asked CSNA coaching supremo and secretary, Sam Dawes, how the hard-working volunteer unit has succeeded against the odds.

“There’s a lot of discipline involved,” Dawes says.

“We really encourage our players to be the best that they can be. Win or lose a game we ask the same questions. Have you done your best? Did we do it as a team? And where can we go from here?

“We have a strong representative group but in saying that we’re also very oriented to encouraging them to participate as coaches in the Net Set Go program which is for grassroots players.

“And what tends to happen is that the players improve overall. You see progression in their schoolwork and they become a lot more confident.

“It’s important that there’s a message. And the message has got to be something that all the kids understand and can put into practice.”

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CSNA is again feeling the pinch from Sydney’s changing roadscape, this time at their Tempe home – Robyn Webster Sports Centre - named after a former member who died in the 2002 Bali bombing.

Yet on court the good news stories keep piling up, whether it’s the progress of Indigenous Schoolgirls champion, Mikeyah Welsh-Tighe, or CSNA prodigy and teenage starlet Sarahpheinna Woulf who became the first schoolgirl to be selected for a national netball team, Sunshine Coast Lightning.

For Dawes the secret to a great sports association is simple. “It’s all about community,” she says.

Go to www.insidesport.com.au/clubbies/vote to have your say in the 2018 Sportscover Clubbies Awards. Voting closes on April 15 and winners will be announced on May 3.