STEWART Jacobs, president of National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica (NPTAJ), fully endorses the suggestion by Shawn Murdock, head coach of the country’s male netball team, to introduce the sport to young boys as part of a developmental thrust.

Despite the stigma in some countries, including Jamaica, where boys or men playing netball is oftentimes frowned upon, Murdock, who also serves as assistant coach of the Sunshine Girls, recently emphasised the importance of introducing the sport at the preparatory and primary school levels.

Jacobs told the
Jamaica Observer that the time has passed for any particular sport to be considered male-only or female-only.

“As the president of the association I would endorse it, because one must look at the ways in which we as a people have developed and how we have evolved,” he said.

“When a girl played football 30 years ago or 40 years ago, she was a tomboy; a girl would never be playing football [as] she was ostracised and looked at differently. But now, the females are playing football and they are doing what they are doing and taking Jamaica to the next step and qualifying for two World Cups. Therefore if netball — that we have done so well in at the female gender — [is now being played by males] I see nothing wrong with males playing netball,” he said.

Jacobs insisted there is no inherent compromise of masculinity in playing netball, describing it as a slower form of basketball, a sport in which Jamaica has excelled.

“The stigma that is attached is left up to individuals who are yet to understand that human evolution doesn’t stop with them, and that males and females can play sport likewise and enjoy themselves. There is no rule that says this sport is all-female and this sport is all-male,” he said.

Jacobs said he commended the organisers for their initiative, and expressed hope that Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) would endorse the endeavour, promoting inclusivity and breaking down gender-based barriers.

When contacted on Tuesday, Keith Wellington, the president of ISSA, said his organisation has not yet had dialogue on the matter and therefore he will not be commenting on it.

Winston Keyes, a member of the organising committee for sport at Jamaica Independent School Association (JISA) Prep Schools, said his association is in support of having males playing netball at a young age, as long as they compete separately from the girls.

“As a group we are looking at the sport as a sport, and the majority of our members are thinking that if it is separated — boys playing with boys and girls playing with girls — then we will have no problem.

“It [the organisation] is split down the middle to say that if it is a mixed-gender sport,” he said. “As far as I am concerned, I don’t have a problem with it, and the majority on the committee don’t have a problem with it also and we will discuss it further to see how best it could work,” Keyes added.

Netball Jamaica President Tricia Robinson said her organisation would support the move to have young boys playing netball in the prep and primary schools.

There has been a rise in men playing netball globally. A men’s Fast5 netball competition was staged by World Netball in New Zealand in November 2023, with Australia defeating the host nation to win the title.

According to data from the Australian Sports Commission’s latest survey, about 115,400 men played netball in 2022 in that country, up from 64,300 in 2020.

The Jamaica men’s team, dubbed the Suns and which is made up of only locally based players, took on hosts England in a number of matches last year.