HULL KR will have a brand-new team in 2023.
The new netball side will be competing in the Humberside County League, with the Hull KR first team in Division 2 and their development team, ‘The Robins’ in Division 4.
Rooted in East Hull, the newest arm of Hull KR trains every Thursday at Malet Lambert School. Hull KR Netball will become the first non-rugby team to join the Robins’ family and will open a new avenue for Hull KR to bring the city’s netball and rugby league communities together.
The formation of Hull KR Netball comes as the on-court sport continues to grows across the country at a grassroots and professional level, following the rise of the national team, the England Vitality Roses and the popularity of the Vitality Netball Superleague.
The Robins has confirmed that Olivia Park will become Hull KR Netball’s player-coach in their inaugural season. A long-term member of Hull KR’s fan experience team, Park is also an experienced and well-respected coach in Hull’s netball community, having fell in love with the sport in high school.
Now working with Netball England, Park was delighted to see the launch of Hull KR Netball and lead the Robins’ newest team: ‘It’s really exciting to be a part of bringing netball to Hull KR.
‘We have a great pool of talented players in Hull and its surrounding areas. I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can achieve on and off the court.
“Hull KR Netball are aiming to provide a netball outlet in East Hull at a high-performance and development level. We will not only have a competitive first team, but we hope to introduce more people to netball through our social sessions ‘Back to Netball’ and our new Walking Netball sessions.”
Hull KR Chief Executive, Paul Lakin added: “We are delighted to be launching Hull KR Netball and looking forward to our teams developing and flourishing.
“This is an important diversification of our brand in sport and we will be providing every support in their future growth. We hope our loyal fan base will also enjoy following the journey of our Netball teams.”