> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Netball enthusiasts bring it back home - URL: https://www.smdp.com/netball-enthusiasts-bring-it-back-home/ - Published: 2006-07-06T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T18:45:20.000Z - Author: Guest Author - Tags: Sports, Sunset Park, #archive-import *CHASING SKIRTS* *By MICHAEL J. TITTINGER Daily Press Staff Writer* SUNSET PARK — Each Saturday morning, women from all corners of the world descend upon Marine Park. There are Aussies and Kiwis, Fijians and South Africans, Singa-poreans and Trinbagonians. Once they lay claim to the southern end basketball court, the women get down to it, scrawling goal circles in colored chalk, donning their “bibs” and working up a sweat under the summer sun by playing a seemingly kinder, gentler version of basketball. “It’s clear as mud, is it?” a beaming Jo O’Key asks the two newcomers seated in the bleachers. What it is, is netball, a genteel offshoot of Dr. Naismith’s game that is played primarily outside the United States, though it was invented in this country more than a century ago by the same man who hatched basketball in a YMCA gym with peach baskets. Take away the dribbling, the backboards and the dunks. Insert skirts. The Santa Monica Waves,a club of roughly 40 active members, is one of 30 recognized netball clubs in the United States.O’Key,their head coach, seems the epitome of health and fitness, and the ideal poster girl for a game whose name conjures looks of‘huh?’from most people living stateside. “You can play this,right?”she asks.“It’s cake.” When a sports teacher in New Orleans at the turn of the 20th century misinterpreted the rules of basketball — restricting players from leaving certain areas of the court — netball as we know it, or at least the rest of the world knows it, was born. Despite its curiosity status in the United States, the sport of netball holds universal appeal. After gaining popularity in England a century ago, the sport spread through countries that were part of the commonwealth. Australia and New Zealand are considered the world’s leading nations in a sport recognized by the International Olympic Committee. In a sense, netball is a purer version of the game Naismith hatched in Springfield, Mass., in 1891\. There is little contact and the goal stands at each end of the court alone, with no backboard, akin to a peach basket. Centered around passing, the game is viewed by its players as the quintessential team game. Steve Nash, point guard for the Phoenix Suns and two-time Most Valuable Player of the NBA, let it slip in an interview once that his extraordinary passing skills derived from his playing netball as a kid in Canada... with his sisters. “The sport is very lady-like,” O’Key said of netball’s appeal. “It’s kind of sexy as well. Our uniforms are a cross between a cheerleader and a tennis player. Our skirts are the only protection we need.” That’s not to say men aren’t welcome on the netball court. Husbands and boyfriends of the Waves players — dubbed “Longboards”— frequently make like Nash, scrimmaging against the girls in Marine Park. As they outline their makeshift playing court on an existing basketball court, those running rock on the adjacent court often wander over out of curiosity. Auderae Campbell’s cousin heads to Marine Park from his Crenshaw District home on weekends to play pick-up basketball games. Campbell now expects to be coming along for the ride, after watching the Waves play for the first time last Saturday. “My cousin told me they play netball out here every Saturday. I’d never heard of it, but I think it’s wonderful... good exercise, the socializing,” said Campbell, 25, who spent four years in netball-friendly Jamaica as a child. “I played tennis when I was younger, but this is way better.” While the netball players take their sport seriously (the Waves are scheduled to compete in a tournament in San Francisco on July 15), they are always on the lookout for more players. Their roster is constantly evolving, a byproduct of living in a city where people move to and from all parts of the world. The club can also serve as a social base for women new to the area, moms who are looking to stay fit or just those interested in trying new things, even though the sport itself predates the presidency of Teddy Roosevelt. “We have open days, a ‘bring an American’ kind of thing,” jokes O’Key, who hails from Sydney, Australia. “We play a little softer, and don’t throw the ball at their heads. We love it. “We always encourage people to get on the court and give it a go.” ‘JUST LIKE DANCING’ Maxine Lewis, a Santa Monica resident of more than 10 years, started the Santa Monica Waves four years ago after playing for a club in Thousand Oaks. Born in England, netball was just a way of life growing up. It was only in America that brows began to furrow at the mention of the sport. “Everybody out here grew up playing netball,” said Lewis, while watching her team’s players run through a scrimmage. “And everybody who comes back to it has a real love for the game.” A player doesn’t necessarily have to be athletic to compete, with each of the seven positions on the court requiring unique skill sets and manning a given section on the floor, according to Lewis. It’s really all about having fun with like-minded people, the fresh Southern California air and the desire to compete. The Waves are currently in the middle of their season, though according to O’Key, there really isn’t a beginning or end because the girls don’t want to stop playing. Their coach was set to cancel practice last week in light of the July 4 holiday, but her players convinced her otherwise. On Saturday, more than 20 netball players were on hand — men and women, Waves and Longboards, veterans and newbies — working up a sweat under a the brilliant early-morning sunshine. “It just feels great when you play it, just like dancing” said a smiling Lewis. “Even if it’s just about meeting some nice friends.” LOOKING FOR SOME HOME COOKING While Marine Park has served them well, the Waves have simply outgrown their practice facility. Their converted basketball court is considerably shorter and narrower than the standard 50-foot by 100-foot netball playing field. The hoops are wider, have backboards and hover over the court. The boundaries are hastily drawn in washable chalk, completely faded before they take to the courts the following Saturday morning. With Thousand Oaks serving as a model — the city provided the club there with land to establish a court strictly for netball — the Waves are looking to turn some heads in their direction. They want a homecourt to call their own. As it stands now, members of the Waves pool their money together to buy permits in order to reserve the basketball court at Marine Park each Saturday, and sometimes in the middle of the week. “Fundraisers got a court built there (Thousand Oaks),”said Lewis.“We just want a court somewhere with a bathroom, something kid-friendly for the moms.” To that end, the Waves are hosting a fundraiser of their own tonight at the Cock N Bull Pub, at 2947 Lincoln Blvd., aimed at securing a netball court in Santa Monica. The $10 charge for admission covers trivia contest entry, after which gift baskets will be awarded. The Waves are continually growing, according to assistant coach Leigh Ruth, a New Zealand native living in downtown LA, as more and more expatriates of other countries find the Santa Monica team on the Internet while looking for a netball friendly locale in the United States. Ruth said she received five e-mails just last week from new players interested in taking part. “I know when I moved here I was pretty excited to see they had a team,” said a visibly pregnant Ruth, while she coached practice on Saturday. “It’s just nice to have a noncontact sport for women.” SUCCESS IN THE AIR At present, the Waves have four players who also compete on the U.S. National team — more than any club in the nation. Next month, O’Key and some of her teammates will be traveling to Barbados for the qualifying round to gain entry into the 2007 World Championships in Fiji. The U.S. team is currently ranked ninth in the world, but O’Key said that’s subject to change. “Once we get the tall Americans more involved, we can kick some major...,” said O’Key, a real estate investor who relocated to the United States three years ago.“I just wanted to move somewhere with better weather. I loved the idea of moving to America, especially California, where open-minded people are busy moving up in the world. “Here, people are all about success.” In terms of netball, O’Key cites little successes all across the United States, from students in Thousand Oaks being taught the game to a court being built in Westlake to more children of netball players donning a position-indicating bib. “I think it’s gonna sweep the U.S.,” said O’Key. “It’s such a powerful sport. The passing skills are phenomenal.You can play from age 7 to 70\. And it’s not even like it’s a new sport. It already has a fan base. “We’re not teaching the world anything new here.” *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 6, 2006.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/070606.pdf?ref=smdp.com)