Hundreds of people all over the world play netball. Netball is a sport which is very similar to basketball. In fact in the country of its origin, United States it is known as ‘women’s basketball’ for this very reason. The invention of the game is credited to Clara Greogry Baer, who is a legendary in women’s sport. Netball’s increasing popularity has meant that the game has spread as a participant sport all over the world. You can find that people play netball in countries such as Australia, Barbados, South Africa, Jamaica and the United Kingdom to mention only some.
The players play netball on a hard court just as in the case with basketball. The ball also resembles that of the ball which is used in basketball. The only difference here is that the ball is lighter and smaller. It is also softer than the ball used for basketball. There are seven players in each side. Most of the rules are related to that of basketball. You can find that people play netball all over the world; such is the growing popularity of the sport.
The history of the game actually dates back a very long time. The first instance of the game being played was in England in 1895 at the Madame Ostenburg’s College. The game soon spread to the British Commonwealth countries. During the early days there were no set regulations so games were played with various variants of the rules. For instance, some games were played with nine players in each side and so on and so forth.
It was Clara Baer who formulated the rules. This started the actual formalisation of the sport. Regular international competitions began in 1907. Then there was no looking back quite literally. The result is that you can find that people play netball all over the world till this day. The Poly Netball Club in United Kingdom is the oldest netball club in the world.
The game was soon to spread all over the world. During the initial spread of the game it mostly began to be played in British colonies such as Jamaica and Antigua apart from Australia. The first world championship was held in 1963. Eastbourne, England played host and from then onwards netball world championships have been a once in a four year affair. Australia is the country which has dominated the world championships. New Zealand too is a winner of the world championship of netball.
The game continues to be popular in former British colonies. You can find that there are thousands of people who play netball in countries such as Jamaica and Barbados. In fact in the sport is second only to cricket in most of the Caribbean islands. In Australia alone there are an estimated 10,000 netball courts around the country.
In fact in Australia and New Zealand more women play netball than any other sport. Both these countries therefore have an exclusive competition meant for women. There are several leading men’s teams too. You can find plenty of valuable information on netball over the internet. You can for instance learn in detail about the rules that apply to netball over the internet. Anyone who wants to play netball can do with such useful information. You can also find detailed information on the origin and growth of the game over the years at various online sources.