Club History

QofA Netball Club History

QofA Netball Club started to take shape in 1988. It all started when Sister Irene Maree wanted to revive netball at Queen of Apostles school, following success in one of her Canberra schools. She recalled how it used to be a strong, popular and rewarding girls’ sport in the 1970s, and her keenness was set alight.

With the help of parents, the ball was set in motion and the first netball communication was sent to parents on 4 February 1988. Sister Irene had a wonderful response and five school teams were formed. The school courts were not in good condition so training was held at nearby Turner Park. As the club had no funds, the school provided netballs. Sister Irene purchased material for the bibs, which were sewn by a grandparent and screen-printed by the nuns.

Sister Irene believed that one way to learn about netball was by becoming involved and playing, so she invited mums to play. At a morning tea held at the Queen of Apostles school Chuter Street campus, two adult teams were formed.

In 1989, the netball court at the Queen of Apostles school was resurfaced to allow training to take place. Each year Sister Irene renewed interest with more and more teams being formed. The parents helped with coaching and umpiring, with Sister Irene doing the majority of the administrative work.

In 1992, there were twelve school teams and two adult teams. Sister Irene felt that it had grown to a point where she could no longer solely take on the job and so parents were called upon to help. This marked the official launch of QofA Netball Club, with its first inaugural meeting held on 11 February 1992.

Parents offered to take on various tasks to help Sister Irene and enable the club to run more efficiently. The wheels were set in motion in late 1992, after the first Annual General Meeting, to incorporate the club. After much hard work by committee members, QofA Netball Club finally received its Certificate of Incorporation in July of 1993 which sadly coincided with Sister Irene's departure overseas.

Each year the club has continued to grow and prosper with the help, hard work and dedication of parents working on the committee and in the capacity of coaches, managers, umpires and players.