Tyneside Raiders Netball Club

In the words of Friends… Hannah and the club are simply “on a break!” I refuse to believe it’s anything more than that.

In September, Hannah begins her teacher training, and we all know that’s going to be a busy and demanding year. While she’ll be stepping away from coaching for now, I’m choosing to believe it’s only temporary.

Hannah has grown up with the club and was one of our very first Raiders. Watching her develop from a young player into such an incredible role model has been a privilege. She has the kindest, most generous and supportive nature, which makes her a fantastic coach. She genuinely wants every child to enjoy netball and goes above and beyond to make that happen.

Thankfully, we’re not losing Hannah completely! She’s a fabulous player, and we’re lucky that she’ll still be with us at training and out on court as a valued member of our Rose team.

My biggest wish is that, once she qualifies, she lands a teaching job close to home… because then there’ll be no excuse not to come back to coaching!

Good luck with your teacher training, Hannah. We know you’ll be amazing, and we’re all so proud of you.

And remember… we’re just on a break! ❤️🖤🤍

Some of you may already know that one of our wonderful coaches is hanging up her whistle.

After 11 years with the club, Anne has decided to step down from her coaching role. She has been an integral part of the club’s growth and success, and I’ve been incredibly lucky to coach alongside her for so many years.

With her new teaching role in Durham, it became difficult for Anne to make training each week. Even so, she continued to give up her Saturdays to coach matches, something we were all so grateful for.

Anne will be hugely missed by both our players and coaching team. Personally, I’ll miss our meetings over countless cups of tea and cheese scones, putting the world to rights while somehow managing the impossible task of organising multiple teams so every girl had the chance to play.

Behind the scenes, Anne has dedicated an incredible amount of time to the club. From fixtures and team selections to making sure every player knew where they needed to be, she did it all. Her endless messages (which admittedly became a little more persistent as the week went on!) kept everything running smoothly. Very few people truly understand the time, commitment, patience and occasional frustration that goes into volunteering in grassroots sport, but Anne certainly does.

Thank you, Anne, for everything you’ve given to the club over the past decade. Your dedication, friendship and unwavering commitment have made a lasting impact on so many young players, their families and all of us lucky enough to work alongside you.

I’ll miss you more than you know… although a small part of me can’t help but think you’ll be back one day! Until then, enjoy your Saturdays off. I hope you get plenty of time to relax—but not too much! If you start getting bored, you know exactly where you belong.

And, of course, we’re all keeping our fingers crossed that those knees hold out so you can continue pulling on the dress and playing with us next season. We’d love to have you back on court for many more games yet!

Once part of the team, always part of the team. ❤️🖤🤍

Tonight we said goodbye to two gorgeous young ladies!!

Leah McCafferty having a break to continue her studies, and our young Scarlett (Samantha) off to pastures new!

Good luck ladies xx

Well done to solitaires tonight! Tight game against Stanley thunder… unfortunately the game had to be cut short due to an injury. We hope Ashley had a speedy recovery.
Big thanks to Vic, Ash and Gemma for stepping up! You were all great!! Xx

Congratulations to our little pocket rockets!!! Successfully got into under 11’s North Durham County Netball Futures 1 and 2 Squads!!! So proud of how hard you all work!! ❤️🖤🤍

Huge well done to our Raiders Ruby who played at the Shields Avengers Netball Club tournament today!!! Came second in the Div 1 section!! Beyond proud…. A mix of young legs which we all need but a lot of experience which is (in my opinion) equally important!if not more 😜😜😜☺️☺️☺️
Well done everyone # # #

Huge shout out to the lovely Claire who is always there as team manager when we need her # # #

Huge well done to our U13D for their win today. It was a tight one! Well played to both teams.
POM - Cherry 🥰