Jamaica national netball team

Jamaica

Nickname(s)	Sunshine Girls
Association	Netball Jamaica
Confederation	AFNA (Americas)
Head coach	Minneth Reynolds
Asst coach	Annett Daley
Manager	Lydia Wilks
Captain	Nicole Aiken-Pinnock
Vice-captain	Paula Thompson
Most caps	Nadine Bryan (179)
Top scorer	Connie Francis
INF ranking	4
Team colours Alternate
World Championships
Appearances	13 (Debuted in 1963)
2011 placing	4th
Best result	3rd (1991, 2003, 2007)
Commonwealth Games
Appearances	5 (Debuted in 1998)
2014 placing	3rd
Best result	3rd (2002, 2014)

The Jamaica national netball team, commonly known as the Sunshine Girls, represent Jamaica in international netball competition. Netball is not only the number one women's sport in Jamaica but also the number one team sport in the island, based on World Rankings and recent history and the majority of the schools in Jamaica participate.^[1] Netball receives full media coverage on television, radio and in newspapers but still does not get as much coverage as less successful team sports such as Football & Cricket.^[2] Jamaica were coached by former representative Oberon Pitterson, and captained by midcourt veteran Nadine Bryan up to the end of 2013. However, a Technical Director (Jill McIntosh) and new coach (Minneth Reynolds), were appointed in early 2014. As of 9 September 2014, Jamaica are fourth in the INF World Rankings.^[3] While the senior Jamaican netball team is widely known as the Sunshine Girls, the Jamaican Fast 5 netball team is known as Jamaica Fast5 or the FAST5 Girls.^{[4][5][6][7][8]}

History

Netball started being played in Jamaican schools in 1909. In 1959, the Jamaica Netball Association was formed and affiliated with the West Indies Netball Board. A team representing Jamaica was invited to compete at the West Indies Tournament held in August that year in Montserrat.^[9]

Since their first international game in 1959, the Sunshine Girls have participated in every World Netball Championships, finishing no lower than sixth. Jamaica placed third in three World Championships – in 1991, 2003 and 2007.^[1] They have played in all four Commonwealth Games netball events to date, winning a bronze medal in 2002 in Manchester and 2014 in Glasgow, Scotland.^[10] Jamaica also won a silver medal in the inaugural World Netball Series tournament in 2009.

In 2011, former Jamaican captain Oberon Pitterson was appointed the new head coach for the Sunshine Girls at the 2011 World Netball Championships in Singapore.^[11] Longstanding captain Simone Forbes did not attend the World Championships after testing positive the banned substance Clomiphene and was replaced by Nadine Bryan.^[12][13] Forbes subsequently retired, ending her illustrious career.^{[14][15][16][17][18]} After failing to medal in 2011, some of the experienced players on the squad decided to take a break from the national team, while Althea Byfield chose to retire, as they had grown disgruntled with embattled coach Pitterson.^{[16][19][20][21][22]} Malysha Kelly & Romelda Aiken took over co-captaining duties at the 2013 Fast5 tournament and Kelly continued to captain the team in the first half of 2014.^{[23][24][25][26]} Nicole Aiken-Pinnock took over as captain ahead of the 2014 Commonwealth Games and also captained them at the 2015 Netball World Cup.^[27][28]

Players

2015 Sunshine Girls Netball World Cup Team

Name	Position(s)	2015 club/franchise
Romelda Aiken	GS	Queensland Firebirds
Nicole Aiken-Pinnock (Captain)	GK, GD	Clarendon Gators
Shanice Beckford	GA, GS	St. Ann Orchids
Kadie-Ann Dehaney	GK, GS	Clarendon Gaters
Nicole Dixon	WA, C	Manchester Spurs
Stacian Facey	GK, GD	Kingston Hummingbirds
Jhaniele Fowler-Reid	GS	Southern Steel
AnnaKay Griffiths	GA, GS	St. Catherine Racers
Sasher-Gaye Henry	WA, WD	St. James Sharpes
Paula Thompson (Vice-Capt.)	C, WD	St. James Sharpes
Khadijah Williams	WA, C	St. Catherine Racers
Vangelee Williams	WD, GD	Manchester Spurs

Notable past players

• Connie Francis
• Elaine Davis
• Simone Forbes
• Carla Borrego
• Oberon Pitterson

Most-capped Jamaican netballers

Name	Test Caps	Test Team Years
Nadine Bryan	159[29][30][31]	1996–2014
Oberon Pitterson	120+	1988–2006
Connie Francis	120+	1985–1999, 2003
Georgia Gordon	110	1994–2005, 2010
Simone Forbes	102	2000–2011
Elaine Davis	91[32]	1995–2007[32]
Nichala Gibson	79	2000–2009
Kasey Evering	78	2002–2011, 2012, 2014
Nicole Aiken-Pinnock	78	2005–2011, 2014–present
Sasher-Gaye Henry	75	1996–1997, 2006–2011, 2014–2015[33][34][35]
Romelda Aiken	74	2005–present

Competitive history

Netball World Cup
Year	Championship	Location	Placing
1963	1st World Championships	Eastbourne, England	5th
1967	2nd World Championships	Perth, Australia	6th
1971	3rd World Championships	Kingston, Jamaica	4th
1975	4th World Championships	Auckland, New Zealand	5th
1979	5th World Championships	Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago	5th
1983	6th World Championships	Singapore	5th
1987	7th World Championships	Glasgow, Scotland	5th
1991	8th World Championships	Sydney, Australia	3rd
1995	9th World Championships	Birmingham, England	5th
1999	10th World Championships	Christchurch, New Zealand	4th
2003	11th World Championships	Kingston, Jamaica	3rd
2007	12th World Championships	Auckland, New Zealand	3rd
2011	13th World Championships	Singapore	4th
2015	14th World Cup	Sydney, Australia	4th
2019	15th World Cup	Liverpool, England

Netball at the Commonwealth Games
Year	Games	Event	Location	Placing
1998	XVI Games	1st Netball	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia	4th
2002	XVII Games	2nd Netball	Manchester, England	3rd
2006	XVIII Games	3rd Netball	Melbourne, Australia	4th
2010	XIX Games	4th Netball	Delhi, India	4th
2014	XX Games	5th Netball	Glasgow, Scotland	3rd
2018	XXI Games	6th Netball	Gold Coast, Australia

Fast5 World Netball Series (formerly Fastnet)
Year	Tournament	Location	Placing
2009	1st World Series	Manchester, England	2nd
2010	2nd World Series	Liverpool, England	3rd
2011	3rd World Series	Liverpool, England	4th
2012	4th World Series	Auckland, New Zealand	4th
2013	5th World Series	Auckland, New Zealand	3rd
2014	6th World Series	Auckland, New Zealand	4th

Kit suppliers

Jamaica's kits are currently supplied by Gilbert.

See also

• CWG 2002 Results
• CWG 2006 SSG Roster
• Jamaican netball players

External links

• Sunshine Girls Squad
• SSG at NWC

References

1. "Rules of the Sun - TRUE". True.
2. "Netball and field hockey". Jamaicans.com. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
3. IFNA. "Current World Rankings". Retrieved 9 September 2014.
4. "Netball Jamaica - Upcoming Events FAST5 Netball World Series". mynetballjamaica.com.
5. 2014 Jamaica Fast5 - Coach Preview. YouTube. 5 November 2014.
6. "Sunshine Girls aim to replicate medal finish". jamaica-gleaner.com.
7. "Netball Jamaica - Heartbreaking win and loss at Fast5". mynetballjamaica.com.
8. "Netball Jamaica - From dismal start to a blazing finish". mynetballjamaica.com.
9. Jamaica Netball Association. "The Origins of Netball". Retrieved 5 August 2011.
10. "Glasgow 2014 - Netball". thecgf.com.
11. Bailey, Robert (12 May 2011). "Pitterson, Daley the WNC coaches for Sunshine Girls". The Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
12. Bogle, Dania (30 May 2011). "Forbes says she'll never stop loving the game". The Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
13. "Bryan named captain of Sunshine Girls - Sport". Jamaica Observer.
14. "Forbes Retires From The Sunshine Girls - RJR News - Jamaican News Online". rjrnewsonline.com.
15. "The many sides of Simone Forbes". jamaica-gleaner.com.
16. "Byfield only casualty of WNC disaster - Sport - Jamaica Observer Mobile". jamaicaobserver.com.
17. "Simone Forbes picks up 3-month ban - Sport". Jamaica Observer.
18. "Topic: Former netball captain Simone Forbes banned - Netball Scoop". netballscoop.com.
19. "Exodus Of Senior Netballers Hurting The Sport - RJR News - Jamaican News Online". rjrnewsonline.com.
20. "Sports Jamaica:: End Of The Road?... Senior Netballers Reportedly Considering Retirement :: Netball". sportsjamaica.com.
21. "Sunshine Girls targeting gold at Commonweath Games". jamaica-gleaner.com.
22. "Topic: JAMAICA COMM GAMES TEAM 2014 - Netball Scoop". netballscoop.com.
23. Jamaica Star Online. "Aiken, Fowler head strong FAST5 squad - Sport - Jamaica Star - October 1, 2013". jamaica-star.com.
24. "Aiken, Kelly Lead Sunshine Girls Into Fast5 World Series - RJR News - Jamaican News Online". rjrnewsonline.com.
25. "Netball Weekly Round Up 10th January 2014". netball.org.
26. "Sunshine Girls off to Fast5 Champs". jamaica-gleaner.com.
27. "Jamaica's Netball World Cup Team 2015 - Sport". Jamaica Observer.
28. "Jamaica's Netball World Cup Team 2015 - Netball". Jamaica Observer.
29. "Sunshine Girls brace for high-riding England - Sport". Jamaica Observer.
30. "Sunshine century! Bryan delighted with 100th international cap". jamaica-gleaner.com.
31. "Topic: Centurions still playing - Netball Scoop". netballscoop.com.
32. "Elaine Davis To Take A Break From Netball - RJR News - Jamaican News Online". rjrnewsonline.com.
33. "Henry thanks sponsor JN, plans retirement". jamaica-gleaner.com.
34. "Henry thanks JN, plans retirement". Community Forum.
35. "Henry thanks JN, plans retirement news". Newsunited.com.

The following is the Jamaica roster in the netball tournament of the 2006 Commonwealth Games.^[1]

Jamaica national netball team – 2006 Commonwealth Games roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. Name Age - DOB Ht. Club Club nat. GA, GD Aiken, Nicole 20 - <span="font-size:140%;">11 December 1985 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) Jamalco C, WA Bryan, Nadine 29 - <span="font-size:140%;">18 December 1976 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) Jamalco C, WA Campbell, Marion 21 - <span="font-size:140%;">24 March 1984 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) Tivoli Gardens Netball Club GS, GK Davis, Elaine (C) 29 - <span="font-size:140%;">21 September 1976 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) Jamalco GK, GS, WD Evering, Kasey 23 - <span="font-size:140%;">14 February 1983 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Tivoli Gardens Netball Club GS, GA Ffrench, Jodi Ann 21 - <span="font-size:140%;">23 July 1984 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) Seneca Netball Club WD, C, GA Forbes, Simone 24 - <span="font-size:140%;">20 June 1981 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) Waulgrovians WD, GD Gibson, Nichala 23 - <span="font-size:140%;">20 October 1982 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) Waulgrovians C, WA Hylton, Tamara 23 - <span="font-size:140%;">24 April 1982 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) Waulgrovians GK, GD, WD Pitterson-Dunn, Oberon 35 - <span="font-size:140%;">8 February 1971 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) Waulgrovians GA, GS Thomas, Latoya 20 - <span="font-size:140%;">8 November 1985 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Alpha Netball Club C Thomas, Peter-Gaye 19 - <span="font-size:140%;">9 April 1986 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) Tivoli Gardens Netball Club	Head coach Maureen Hall Team manager Yvonne Keane-Dawes Legend (C) Team captain Club field describes current pro club Injured

1. "JNA names senior team for Commonwealth Games 2006". IFNA. 22 February 2006. Retrieved 28 September 2012.