Simone Forbes, first vice-president of Netball Jamaica, says the organisation will conduct national trials for the senior netball team January 12-13 at the Leila Robinson courts at the National Stadium.

Forbes, a former captain of the Sunshine Girls team, said it marks the first occasion in which the organisation will extend the trials over two days. She noted that the decision is driven by the desire to provide selectors with sufficient time to assess a larger pool of players.

“This is the first time that we are having this type of trial because, usually, we will have it for one day, but this time around, we will be having it for two days. After the first day, the selectors will invite those who will come back on the second day, and then the final selection will happen on the 13th of January,” she explained.

“They will be choosing 20 players whom the coach will work with over the next four years. Yes, there may be players coming in and out, but in terms of the core, that is the group that the coach will work with,” Forbes added.

Netball Jamaica is currently in the process of appointing a new coach for the Sunshine Girls after the tenure of veteran Connie Francis came to an end following last year’s Netball World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa.

Forbes pointed out that a new head coach for the Sunshine Girls team should be in place after the player trial exercise.

“Our new cycle officially starts in January 2024, and by the end of January, we should have a new head coach, and as you know, Shawn Murdock is still the assistant coach currently on contract. After this trial, the selectors will choose the 20 players that make up the squad,” Forbes said.

She explained that the eight Sunshine Girls playing in Australia will receive a special invitation from Jamaica Netball to join the 20-member Sunshine Girls squad.

“For those players who are playing in Australia, by the time the trials come around, those players would already be in Australia, and therefore, these players will not be able to attend the trials, so we will be sending out invitations to these players to join the squad,” Forbes said.

Additionally, Forbes highlighted that Netball Jamaica, for the first time, will be hosting a national coaches workshop on January 27 and 28. Coaches in the national programme will come together for the workshop to be facilitated by Maureen Hall, head of Netball Jamaica’s technical committee.