With sport at the heart of what makes Geraldton special, netball is still the choice for many athletes from NetSetGo to Seniors.
Geraldton Netball Association Events Coordinator Jodie Tirant said for many members of the association, netball has given them connection and community, and this was a well earned celebration.
“We hadn’t had a season wind up since two years before Covid starting, usually awards get presented at the end of the grand final,” she said.
“It was gold for me to be able to bring the Clubs back together and bring back some atmosphere.”
The night began kicked off with a red carpet as guests walked in wearing either blue, yellow or white to honour the Associations colours.
Speeches, awards and a dance floor took up most of the night, whilst some very special life members shared stories of their time in netball.
“One of the themes that they all said was that being part of the association and a community for such a long time has given them connections to people within Geraldton,” Jodie said.
“They’ll go down the street and remember coaching a person in 1984 or something like that, you know, and then you see them coach their kids and their grandkids.”
Sub Junior president Alicia Burnett was awarded volunteer of the year, Jodie praised her tireless dedication.
“Alicia coordinates the entire sub junior programme, which is fixturing, all the primary schools. She coordinates the day on the Saturday ensuring everything runs smoothly,” she said.
Grand finalists, MVPs and the associations all-stars were also recognised with awards on the night.
The anniversary wasn’t the only highlight of the year. In partnership with the Geraldton Netball Football League, raising funds to fight Motor Neurone Disease.
“You paid one hundred dollars to nominate someone from a Club, and they had to dress up, the local paper got around it taking some photos,” Jodie said.
“I think we raised close to $8000, which was obviously really great.”
For Jodie, the heart of the association is the generations of women who continue to build and sustain it.
“I’ve noticed in Geraldton you’ll see a Nanna involved and then her daughter, and then her granddaughter,” she said.
“People belong to their Club, and it just continues.”
The only downside for Geraldton Netball Association? The success of the 2025 celebrations means the association will need a bigger venue in 2026!
