Gibraltar Netball U19 took on the challenge in Loughborough

Gibraltar U19 Netball squad was tested just before the festivities in a Europe Netball U19 Pilot Event held at Loughborough.
The squad was to perform against Under 19 sides from Wales, England, Scotland, Isle of Man, Ireland and Northern Ireland, coming away with just the one win, but which could have easily have been three having lost against Ireland and Northern Ireland by the narrowest of margins.
With their opponents ranked among the top teams in Netball, the event was to provide Gibraltar’s young talents with an opportunity to experience playing at a higher level than they are accustomed to. This seen as a pathway towards preparing for their participation in the World Youth netball Championships which will be hosted in Gibraltar in 2025, and which will see Gibraltar playing against the world’s top ranked teams.
Gibraltar was to face three early harsh defeats at the hands of Wales, England Y and Scotland before they were to see themselves coming away with a victory.
Picking themselves up from the three earlier defeats and in what was a short space of time with the event running through just two days, Gibraltar was to come away with a victory against the Isle of Mn by 16-13.
They were next to face Ireland where they faced the narrowest of defeats losing 13-16.
Another tough encounter against another England side, England X saw them fall 37-4. They were once again to pick themselves up and faced a formidable Northern Ireland, which are ranked at the same levels as Wales and Scotland to produce a performance which saw them only losing by two points. Northern Ireland winning by just 14-12.
Gibraltar Netball officials expressed the hope that the event will become an annual event commenting that “this will align with Gibraltar netball performance pathway. Our athletes can then compete in U17, U19, U21 and seniors. A more realistic progress and more opportunities for players to mature, whereas before it was a huge jump from U17s to seniors.”
The event was also a good testing ground for one of Gibraltar Netballs up and coming umpires with Ella Milan, an A Award Umpire officiating matches.