Three netball coaches and two umpires from across South Australia have been recognized for their contributions to their communities, chosen as finalists for the 2024 Coach of the Year Award and Umpire of the Year Award (Community).
Darren Saul from the Contax Netball Club, Lee-Anne Cummins from the Newton Jaguars Netball Club and Scott McAra from the Seaford Storm Netball Club are the three finalists for the Coach of the Year Award, which will be presented at the Netball SA Awards Gala next month.
Barbara Reed from the Seaford Storm Netball Club and Jorja Long from the Meadows Netball Club are the two finalists for the Umpire of the Year Award, which will also be presented at the Gala.
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2024 Coach of the Year Award (Community)
Darren Saul has been nominated for the Coach of the Year award for the impact he has had on his athletes as well as the broader netball community.
Darren has held the role of Head Coach for the Contax Reserves team for the past two years and played a huge role in guiding young athletes through their first year of senior netball.
Outlined in Darren’s nomination, he has been described as having provided a supportive and positive environment for his athletes, allowing them to be the best they can both on and off the court.
He has dedicated time to improving the Contax Netball Academy by running specialist coaching sessions for their intermediate, junior and sub junior players.
His nomination highlighted his involvement in Netball SA's junior development programs where he was the Assistant Coach for the Adelaide Thunderbirds Emerging Talent Academy and U17 selector.
Further to Darren’s work with the Contax Netball Club and Netball SA pathways, he has been a key figure in the Southern Dragons Men’s and Junior Boys program.
He was also the Southern Dragons Open Assistant Coach and Contax Men’s head coach in 2024.
Darren not only provides development opportunities for his players but upcoming coaches as well, evident through his work with coaches Georgia Beaton and Chelsea Keough in the Premier League Squad environment.
Darren’s nomination outlined him as an outstanding volunteer coach, through his dedication and willingness to provide opportunities for players to succeed in the sport.
Scott McAra has been nominated for the 2024 Coach of the Year award for his contribution to the Seaford Netball Club.
He is an accredited coach who has been with the club for six years and has coached for five years for junior grades.
In the quiet summer periods, Scott took it upon himself to create more opportunities for his players by creating the summer training program catered for all ages and abilities.
Each week over summer Scott would curate planned sessions for groups of 30 - 50 children that would cover fundamental skills, movement and fitness required to succeed on the netball court.
His nomination outlined that Scott was always the first one to set-up and pack down equipment each week and would always check in with coaches if they ever needed support.
For the 2024 season, Scott stepped into a committee role where he became the club’s Equipment Coordinator. He played a huge role in helping the club clean and organise equipment over the Christmas period to ensure his players were set up for the 2024 season.
Scott’s nomination made emphasis on his willingness to support the growth and development of the players of the Seaford Storm and the wider Association.
Lee-Anne Cummins from the Newton Jaguars Netball Club rounds out our finalists and has been nominated for her dedication to her club and netball community.
She has been involved with Netball SA’s State Team programs, Adelaide Thunderbirds Talent Academy and coaches in schools.
Lee-Anne is the current mentor of the Thunderbirds Academy, ensuring that players are provided with expert coaches and works with individuals to create the best environment for player development.
She was the Head Coach of the Talent Academy for two years and developed the program, whilst supporting players and coaches throughout the regions.
In her nomination, Lee-Anne has been described as a wonderful mentor for coaches and players.
As outlined in her nomination, Lee-Anne runs coach and player development clinics on weekends for Netball SA, held in regional South Australia in towns such as Kangaroo Island, Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula, Riverland and Clare.
Lee-Anne has invested a significant amount of time to deliver programs and initiatives for her club and the Netball SA community, and has been described as a true role model for what coaches should aspire to be.
2024 Umpire of the Year Award (Community)
Jorja Long has been nominated as a finalist for the Umpire of the Year Award for her outstanding contribution to the Meadows Netball Club and Southern Hills Netball Association.
Jorja earned her umpiring badge in the last summer season and in a time where the SHNA did not have an Umpire Coordinator, she volunteered to take up the mantle alongside another young netballer.
Her nomination outlined Long’s work in bringing more umpire training opportunities to the Hills region, whilst taking her time to educate the community on new rules and how to treat umpires fairly.
The 17-year-old was also responsible for helping many green shirt umpires in getting their careers started along with making sure that all teams had designated umpires for each week’s games.
She has been described as very approachable and always willing to help out when anyone needs her support.
Jorja has been a dedicated player, umpire and volunteer for the Meadows Netball Club for a number of years and has been said to be a joy to be around.
Joining Long as a 2024 finalist is Barbara Reed from the Seaford Storm Netball Club.
Barb is a life member of the Southern Hills Netball Association and joined the Seaford Storm in its inaugural year to umpire junior matches.
She has umpired over 500 games of netball in the last 50 years and played a major role in starting the Coloured Shirt Program at Seaford.
Barb has built strong relationships within the umpiring community and is actively looking to up-skill her club's umpires by mentoring them at matches each week during summer competitions.
Due to suffering from a back disc displacement earlier this year, Barb was unable to umpire, however she proved her resilience once again by umpiring the nine and under derby’s for her club.
