The archives at Netball Victoria are full of treasures that help to enhance understanding of how and why the game first began in the late nineteenth century, and in what ways it then developed in Victoria in the early decades of the twentieth century. One of these historical gems is a delicate gold watch encased in a glass display box. This item is a unique artefact, as it is a well-preserved physical reminder of the women who helped make the game of netball what it is today.
As the handwritten inscription shows, on 25 September 1934, the Victorian Women’s Basket Ball Association (the VWBBA, later known as Netball Victoria) presented this watch to Louise C. Mills as a token of their appreciation in awarding her life membership of the Association. Mills (pictured below in 1932), one of the co-founders of the VWBBA, played a central role in the initial administration of netball and is rightly recognised as one of the key proponents of the sport in Victoria, as well as Australia, but details of her story are not widely known.
It was Mills, as Director of the Girls Department of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) in 1922, who, along with Nonie Hardie as Secretary of the same Department, helped to bring together the various church, “girls” and YWCA teams to form the Melbourne Girls’ Basket Ball Association, thus kick-starting a competition that was later transformed into the VWBBA in 1928. Mills was the inaugural president of the VWBBA and held the position for 12 years, devoting considerable resources to her role by virtue of her formal connection with the YWCA. As a female sports administrator, unusual for this time-period, Mills was able to dedicate much of her working life to developing netball in Victoria, as well as supporting various associations and individual players who competed in national tournaments. She often attended the events herself, as they were important opportunities to discuss netball matters with representatives of other states.
For example, Mills is pictured below (sixth from the bottom left) in a group photograph from the 1929 interstate tournament held in Adelaide. She is holding a kangaroo mascot of some sort, as well as ribbons, perhaps in team colours.
