Resilience in World Cup organisation tested as Debut day marred by fire incident at Tercentenary Sports Hall

It was an eventful start to the NWYC2025 as debutants Gibraltar took to the court at Europa Sports for the first time in a World Netball Cup, facing the Cook Islands. Meanwhile, across town at the Tercentenary Sports Hall, the venue remained empty as defending champions New Zealand saw their opening match cancelled due to Zambia’s absence — making New Zealand the first team to collect two points.

The morning session saw Gibraltar convincingly beaten by a very strong Cook Islands side, competing in their sixth World Cup.

While attention shifted from the first matches, events at the Tercentenary Sports Hall took an unexpected turn. Just fifteen minutes before the start of the second round of fixtures, a fire broke out at the churros kiosk in the cafeteria, forcing an evacuation. Quick intervention from venue staff and organisers ensured the safety of spectators, players, officials, and support personnel. The fire, contained within the portable kiosk, was swiftly extinguished by emergency services and cleared away before the end of the next game, which featured Scotland against Samoa. No injuries were reported.

Officials present at the time at Europa Sports were alerted almost immediately and responded quickly. Minister Leslie Bruzon, who had been watching Gibraltar’s debut match with his daughters, headed straight to the Tercentenary Sports Hall, where he praised the efforts of GSLA staff in managing the situation.

Despite the delay, Scotland and Samoa delivered a thrilling contest, with the scoreline remaining close until the final stages. Scotland eventually held on to their narrow lead to secure a 51–49 victory.

Back at Europa Sports, a brief scoreboard glitch caused a minor delay, with the opening minutes played using flip-board scoring. Once resolved, Australia wasted no time in asserting dominance over Northern Ireland, racing to a 24–2 lead in the first quarter. They went on to claim a comfortable 79–15 victory, setting their sights on the title after finishing runners-up to New Zealand in 2017.

With Gibraltar having drawn a strong home crowd for their opening match earlier in the day, many supporters stayed on to watch the Australia vs Northern Ireland fixture, adding to the lively atmosphere inside Europa Sports.

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Session 1 Results – Day 1 of the NWYC2025 ✨

What an incredible start to the tournament! Here are the results from this morning’s action:
• Gibraltar 29 – 74 Cook Islands
• Australia 79 – 15 Northern Ireland
• Samoa 49 – 51 Scotland

Matches continue later this evening with the afternoon session.

The fire incident at the Tercentenary Sports Hall added another challenge for organisers, who earlier in the week had already dealt with the disruption of a national power outage during team arrivals and practice. Although both situations raised concerns, the swift and effective responses have highlighted the resilience of the organising team, with the tournament continuing smoothly.