Netball in Fiji’s Northern Division is showing strong signs of growth, driven largely by primary school programs that are building players from the ground up — but a gap between primary and secondary competition threatens to blunt that progress, Labasa Primary School Netball president Rita Kamutoa says.
Speaking this week, Kamutoa said the school and neighbouring primary programs have focused on developing girls across the under-nine to under-fourteen age groups, prioritising core skills, teamwork and confidence. “At the primary level, we develop girls from under-nine to under-fourteen. We focus on the grassroots, teaching skills, teamwork, and confidence,” she said, adding that teams are regularly entered into club games to give young players real match experience that is critical to their growth.
Those early interventions, Kamutoa insisted, are already producing players capable of stepping up to higher levels. “Most players from primary schools reach the national stage,” she said, framing primary competitions as an important pipeline for talent in the North. Yet she warned that the pipeline weakens sharply at the point of school transition.
“The problem comes when these girls move on. Many secondary schools don’t recognise the skills they’ve gained in primary programs, and some schools don’t even offer netball,” Kamutoa said. She described a common pattern in which talented primary players find their progress stalled if their secondary school lacks a netball program or the willingness to absorb and develop the skills students bring with them. “The ones who stay in participating schools continue to grow and compete at higher levels. For others, their progress can stall unless they join clubs outside school.”
Joining a club is often the only route for continued development, but travel and equipment costs can be prohibitive for many families and schools. Kamutoa said recent sponsorship support has helped bridge some of those barriers. “With backing from Crest and school initiatives, we’ve been able to expand opportunities, provide kits, and fund travel for competitions. This support ensures more girls can take part and develop their skills,” she said, noting that sponsors have eased the financial burden of getting teams to tournaments and outfitting players for inter-school and club fixtures.
Kamutoa’s remarks represent the latest development in efforts to consolidate grassroots netball into a reliable talent pipeline in the North. While primary coaching and competition are now producing prospects, systemic issues at the secondary-school level — uneven program availability and a lack of formal recognition of prior skill development — risk undermining that momentum unless addressed. For those girls who do transition into schools with active netball programs, the pathway remains clear; for many others, persistence depends on access to external clubs and continued sponsor support.
Looking ahead, Kamutoa expressed optimism that sustained partnership between schools, sponsors and local clubs can secure a stronger future for netball in the Northern Division. Continued investment in kits, travel and school-based programs, she said, will be necessary to ensure young players do not lose momentum during the critical move from primary to secondary education.
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