Riffa Views TV – Episode 20 – Inter-Gulf Netball Championship
26 March 2009 by Riffa Views
Filed under Community, Riffa Views TV
Following the phenomenal success of last year’s Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Netball Championship Riffa Views proudly signed up to another action packed weekend of netball by hosting the 23rd annual Inter-Gulf Netball Championships for the second year running.
On March 13th & 14th months of planning finally climaxed with the creation of a fantastic weekend full of competitive nail bitting netball, entertainment and socialising for players, umpires, coaches, managers, and supporters to enjoy.
England Netball Umpires Confirmed for Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Netball Championships
20 February 2008 by Riffa Views
Filed under Community
Two professional umpires representing England Netball will attend the Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Netball Championships to be held on March 7 & 8th at the Bahrain Rugby Club.
Elaine Wright and Barbara Wilkins, both of them being England Netball ‘A’ Award umpires, will umpire all top-level matches and act as tournament referees. As part of the Bahrain Netball League’s development plan, they will also train Bahrain umpires in the lead-up to the tournament and coach some of them to qualification level.
Mrs Wilkins, who has previously attended the tournament in Abu Dhabi and Dubai said: “I am delighted to represent Engand Netball at this year’s tournament in Bahrain. I have watched the growth of the Inter-Gulf Championships with admiration and I am amazed by the huge improvement in the standard of play across the Gulf over the last few years.”
Mrs Wright commented: “I am passionate about the development of netball in the region and I am looking forward to training some of the young Bahrain players. Umpiring is a core skill and an essential part of the game; I feel confident that we will be in a position to test the girls in Bahrain and award the best of them with accreditations by the end of our stay.”
This year’s Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Championships will be the biggest tournament in the 22-year history of the event. 20 teams representing 7 Gulf countries will compete for the Championship Cup, Plate and Bowl. In addition, a ‘talent and performance team’ from England will compete in a special division called the Invitational Cup.
Michaela Milne, Bahrain Netball League Event Manager said: “We are expecting the highest standard of teams this year and it is vital for us as organisers to achieve this by providing professional umpires. We are delighted that England Netball will be represented at our event by Barbara and Elaine and we look forward to our players receiving valuable umpire training in the lead-up to the event.”
Richard Browning, Riffa Views CEO, said: “As Title Sponsors of this event, it was always our intention to facilitate the development of Bahraini youth. It is ratifying to learn that these professional umpires are committed to training some of the young Bahraini players.”
The England Netball umpires will fly to Bahrain courtesy of Gulf Air, the official airline of the Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Championships.
International Talent confirmed for the Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Netball Championships
13 February 2008 by Riffa Views
Filed under Community
A team of English Netball’s most talented young players has confirmed their participation in the “Invitational Cup” as part of the Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Netball Championships to be held at the Rugby Club on March 7th & 8th.
The players, all from Hucclecote Netball Club in Gloucestershire, feature in England Netball’s U21, U19 and U17’s national long squads. The team will compete in a special division of the tournament called the “Invitational Cup” in which they will play against the top 8-ranked teams from around the Gulf region.
Michaela Milne, Bahrain Netball League Event Manager, said: “This is the first time in the 22-year history of the tournament that a team from England will participate. It’s a great boost for the tournament and will certainly raise the standard of games for spectators and players alike”.
The Hucclecote team will play matches against Bahrain A, Dubai A, Dubai B, Qatar A, Dubai Vets, Dubai C and Oman on the first day of the competition. The Invitational Cup final will be held on Saturday, March 8th.
Hucclecote team captain, Claire Richards mentioned: “We are thrilled to travel to Bahrain. None of us has been to the Middle East before so it will be a great opportunity to see a new country and play against the best teams in the Gulf. We can’t wait to get there.”
