Commentator’s #wakeupnetball plea hits home with fans
External Link: Sue Gaudion's #wakeupnetball Facebook Live video
Respected netball commentator and coach Sue Gaudion's impassioned plea for netball fans to convert their millions of participants into eyeballs on TV appears to have hit the right note.
Key points:
- Sue Gaudion says mooted changes to netball won't need to be made if more of netball's 1.2 million participants start tuning in to watch televised matches
- Netball Australia has brought in raft of new changes to Super Netball season and is contemplating two-point shot for next season
- Gaudion's rallying call sparks #wakeupnetball movement on social media
Gaudion's Facebook Live video on April 26 garnered over 90,000 views and more than 1,000 shares as she called on fans to stop bickering about proposed changes to the sport, and begin to tune in en masse to TV broadcasts.
Netball has a reported participation rate of 1.2 million people in Australia, but with last season's Super Netball matches attracting an average of just 106,000 national viewers per fixture, its TV viewership comes in at just 10 per cent of those playing the game.
Gaudion, a commentator for Channel Nine, said she decided to respond to negativity surrounding the game, saying fans needed to "turn the bloody TV on and watch it".
She said "more eyeballs" would give netball a chance to retain its current rules and points-scoring systems, which have been under scrutiny as Netball Australia ponders changes to these in a bid to inject more interest into the new national competition.
"What I started to read, a really common thread that went through every social media comment was 'why is it that netball, Netball Australia, Channel Nine are trying to change the game of netball?'" Gaudion said.
"… Netball Australia, netball and Channel Nine do not want to change the game of netball. We love the game of netball, I personally love it exactly the way it is. No-one wants the game to change.
"We've fallen in love with the game for as many, many years as we can remember and we desperately want it to stay the same.
"But the reality of the situation is this — and listen very, very carefully — 1.2 million people play netball in our country annually. Here's the problem: 10 per cent watch it on TV.
"So on an annual basis, 10 per cent of our 1.2 million people that go out and play the bloody game of netball, that love the bloody game of netball, they're the only people that turn on and watch it."
'We've got a problem'
She said a failure to convert the national participation rate into eyes on a screen would see the sport becoming unrecognisable.
"We've got a problem netball, we've got a serious problem," Gaudion said.
"The reality of this situation is that 10 per cent of 'netball people' watching and turning on the TV and supporting netball is not enough. That is the hard and fast facts.
"Here's the wake-up call … you have to support the game. If you don't turn on the bloody TV and watch it we are going to end up with a product that is nothing like the game.
"We need to find a way to engage people."
Super Netball has seen a raft of changes introduced, including a new competition points system and more timeouts, and the game's governing body is keen to gauge the debate over introducing a two-point shot for next season.
Coaches and players have been divided over the potential innovation, which would involve a 'two-point zone' of scoring from further out, similar in principle to the three-point shot in basketball.
The already-implemented changes come alongside criticism of new broadcast times — 3:00pm on Saturdays and 1:00pm on Sundays — which could clash with games at a local level.
Gaudion sparks #wakeupnetball movement
The rallying cry prompted a #wakeupnetball hashtag on social media, which Gaudion wants to act as a spur for netball fans nationwide.
Netball Australia said it was monitoring the reaction with interest.
"I just want netball people to wake up and embrace the power we have, to add those numbers and make a difference," Gaudion told The Guardian.
External Link: WakeUpNetball tweets Feel free to use this at your Club or Association this weekend! You can get this every week atExternal Link: Liz Ellis tweets Here is the #wakeupnetball call to action. Get your textas out and get your mug on telly this weekend on @Channel9External Link: Eric George tweets Some hard truths from @SueGaudion about the need for the netball community to support the televised games. Has certainly generated a big reaction!External Link: Nat Medhurst tweets Only 10% of the 1.2million people who play the sport of netball in Australia actually tune in and watch it!!! Time for people to switch on this season or our great sport that we all love will be lostExternal Link: Sharelle McMahon tweets Have a bit of fun and #WakeUpNetball !! The message is simple….lets get behind it! #supernetball
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