The all-boys netball team that was abused for beating girls sides to win a state title has blasted the “inappropriate” way they’ve been treated.
The Queensland Suns have defended their position and hit out at the abuse their players copped in the wake of winning a state title this week.
The Suns’ all-boys Under-17s team went undefeated against regional girls sides to win the championship in Brisbane, sparking uproar about how unfair it was on the female players.
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The Suns won their games by an average margin of 29 goals and beat Bond University Bull Sharks 46-12 in the final, leading many on social media and even rugby league figures Cameron Smith and Andrew Voss to slam Netball Queensland for allowing the boys to play against girls.
The Courier Mail reports the boys were subject to vile abuse from some members of the crowd after defeating the Bull Sharks in the decider, prompting the Suns to slam the “inappropriate” way they’ve been treated.
“The Queensland Suns would like to take this opportunity to ask that our players be respected and that their wellbeing particularly as junior players remains the priority,” the Suns said in a statement.
“We understand that there are many passionate people in netball, which we love, but sometimes that passion can be channelled the wrong way. While respecting everyone is entitled to an opinion, we have been subject to inappropriate behaviour and commentary.
“Whether you agree or disagree with Netball Queensland’s decision to allow us to play for the State Title, the abuse our players have received is unacceptable. Our players and club have also been targeted by comments on social media platforms. Generally, people say that they are all for boys and men being included in netball, though sadly based on recent behaviour we feel unwelcomed and unsupported.
“We do however thank Netball Queensland for including us in the State Titles and also grateful to the many others for their support.
“Despite the negativity and media attention for the wrong reasons, we are confident men’s netball will continue to grow not only here in Queensland but worldwide.”
The Suns said they will “continue to work with Netball Queensland to do whatever we can to see men’s netball and netball in general prosper” and added they would like to see a boys and men’s category at next year’s state titles.
“We ask for your support to ensure our players and staff are shown respect and afforded general courtesy,” they said. “There is no room for this behaviour in our community or in sport in general.”
The Suns’ response to the gender furore comes as Netball Queensland stood its ground over the fierce backlash and took aim at spectators who abused the boys.
“We stand by the decision to choose inclusion over exclusion. And, to invite the Queensland Suns to return to the State Titles given they have limited opportunities to play in a high performance environment due to low participation numbers and limited pathways,” Netball Queensland said.
“We recognise that change is sometimes uncomfortable, and we are buoyed by the support of our wider netball community who are embracing men and boys in competition formats and have done so for some time in a mixed netball capacity.
“The inclusion of both women and men in the competition in 2021 was about affording all netballers the opportunity to play and develop our great game.
“It’s also imperative that we provide a platform for men and boys to participate – because if you can’t see it, you can’t be it. And we aspire to be a sport for all.
“We would also like to express how extremely disappointed we are by the behaviour of a few people in the crowd. We want to explicitly say that this was not the behaviour of our players, rather spectators.
“We also want to make clear that we won’t tolerate vilification or abuse in any form in our game.”
Netball Queensland CEO Catherine Clark wouldn’t back down, saying girls benefit from playing against boys as it pushes both males and females to improve their game.
“We know that we can build and develop and strengthen the game of our girls by playing against the best players regardless of gender,” Clark told the ABC.
“And I still think there will be a desire from a girls perspective to play against the boys.
“Develop your skills. You get better as a player if you play against strong teams and strong players.”
Originally published as Boys netball team hits back after title win over girls sparks uproar