Once Baxter Simpson had signed up for his first netball team, new footwear was next on the 11-year-old’s to-do list. At the local store in Shepparton, a couple of colours were available. Baxter chose his favourite: pink.
“Baxter was getting a bit of flack from the girls when he said he was going to play netball, so when we went to buy his netball shoes he said ‘Mum, I really like the pink ones’,’’ recalls his mum/coach Mandy Sandlant.
“He said ‘pink is not a girls’ colour, I’m going to get the pink shoes cos I like them and I don’t care. There’s no such thing as a girl or boy colour. That’s just rubbish. Girls wear blue so I can wear pink. What’s the diff?’.’’
Exactly. As Baxter points out, has anyone watched AFL lately? Pink boots everywhere.
And what’s the big deal, anyway, about boys playing netball?
As Mandy emphasises, in the face of occasional parental reluctance and schoolyard negativity, netball is a great sport that teaches teamwork, requires hand-eye coordination and other skills, so why should girls have all the fun?
“Baxter’s been asking to play netball for a couple of years, but he was playing football and he plays basketball and he’s thinking about playing cricket,’’ says Mandy. “He’s in grade six, and at the start of this year he said ‘mum, I really want to play netball’, and I was ‘OK’.’’
There was no resistance from their local club/school, Bourchier St. Just a caveat: Baxter is absolutely welcome, but our existing 13/U team is full, so, Mandy, we’ll need to start an extra team and you’ll need to coach.
Done.
The word soon got around. After some gentle persuasion, one of the teachers at Bourchier St had a son who wanted to play, and finally felt able to do so. His twin brother followed. Suddenly, the cap of three boys per team had been reached. A “snowball effect”, Mandy calls it.
As for Baxter, the wannabe shooter was told by his mum that he needed to learn other skills and try different positions first. Meanwhile, Mandy’s stepfather used his welding skills to make a netball ring that was installed in the backyard, and a 150-shots-a-day habit was born (Baxter’s estimate of his accuracy: 90%).
As for the footwear: “Everyone goes, eeeew, you’re wearing pink shoes’ and I go ‘eeeew, you’re wearing’ whatever other colour shoes they’re wearing. And they go ‘but that’s the colour that girls wear’, and I’m like ‘how come you’re wearing a blue shirt, then, at Bourchier?’’’
We can see, therefore, that Baxter is a determined young chap. One who would like to continue playing past next year, when he turns 13 and opportunities become more limited at grassroots level, especially in regional areas. That is until the state mens’ pathway opens up for the 17/U age group.
“It’s a work-in-progress, and we’re encouraging our associations to look at diversifying the local options available for boys,’’ says Mel Taylor, Netball Victoria’s General Manager Netball Participation.
“Lots of associations are really keen and we’ve got a number who are running boys-only or mixed junior competitions, and are providing opportunities. There’s pathway programs for umpires and coaches - lots of our High Performance umpires and coaches are male - and we have started running boys-only clinics and come-and-try days during school holidays, as well.’’
For Baxter, who would love to continue how and wherever he can, there is still a little stigma. Some schoolyard teasing. Not that he minds, for this 11-year-old seems to have it all sorted.
“The thing is a lot of men get put down when they play netball and when they play apparently ‘girlie sports’,’’ he says. “Really, the people who do that are stuck in the 1950s’.’’
So he could be changing people’s opinions? “Yeah, and I have. I’ve trained a lot.
“One of the girls in my classroom, every time I wear my shoes or I bring a netball to school, she says ‘why do you play netball? Is it because your mum’s coaching?’. And I say ‘no it’s because I made a decision for myself’.’’
Written by Linda Pearce
