Connie Francis, renowned Jamaican netball coach, made history signing with England’s Super League’s new franchise, Birmingham Panthers. Francis assumes the director of netball role.

This groundbreaking move marks Francis’ first foray into professional English netball, bolstering Birmingham Panthers’ inaugural season.

Janet Johnson Haughton, Francis’ agent, expressed jubilation over Francis’ historic appointment.

“I am elated, over the moon,” Johnson Haughton told the Jamaica Observer.

“A lot of effort from both of us led to this opportunity. She wanted to experience of being fully committed to holding netball rather than a job and this after school, after work and stuff like that.

“So this is the first time in her career that she is really going to get that opportunity to really be focused on netball and getting paid for it. We’re happy, I mean and we’re totally excited,” Johnson Haughton further stated.

Francis’ stellar playing and coaching career had paved the way for her. Francis was a player in five World Netball Championships, between 1986 and 2003, before becoming head coach in 2007. That year she guided the Sunshine Girls to World Cup bronze in Auckland, New Zealand. The Sunshine Girls also finished second in the inaugural Fastnet series in England in 2009.

Francis was then Sunshine Girls head coach again in October 2019, following the team’s fifth-place result in the Netball World Cup in Liverpool, England, that summer. Since then the Sunshine Girls have made remarkable progress.

At the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, they earned a historic silver medal. Francis had also steered Jamaica to third place at the 2023 Netball World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa. It ended the country’s 16-year wait for a medal at the global showpiece.

After receiving the RJRGleaner Chairman’s Trophy in January of this year’s, Francis had told the Jamaica Observer that she had achieved her goal while being a part-time national coach in Jamaica, and it was now time to pursue a different path.

“Yeah, I think I have accomplished a lot with the Jamaica national netball team, and I’m still growing. I don’t know when I’ll stop growing and learning because there’s so much new stuff happening, so I try to keep myself current. I’ve finished here in Jamaica.

“I’m trying to take another path and make another footprint somewhere else as a full-time coach. I need to challenge myself in that capacity to see what I can do because if I’ve accomplished so much as a part-time coach, I don’t know, the sky’s the limit,” Francis had said.

Johnson Haughton emphasised Francis’ dedication.

“Her stellar career as a player transitioned seamlessly into national coaching, yielding impressive results. Francis was very committed to the programme and the result was that we had bronze medal again at the World Cup last year. So that’s the best the Jamaicans have done; it is the fourth time and she has always been involved as a player for us and then as a coach.

“Then she said she wanted to look elsewhere. I wasn’t her agent then but after she decided to go professional, she asked me to support her in that effort and so this is the culmination of months of negotiations; identifying where the openings were and so on. That’s how we came to Birmingham Panthers and her selection,” Johnson Haughton explained.

Johnson Haughton praised Francis’ resilience and experience.

“She’s one of three Jamaicans to participate in five World Championships. Her playing expertise enhances coaching, inspiring players technically and emotionally. She brings invaluable knowledge to Birmingham Panthers,” she said.

Birmingham Panthers, Johnson Haughton said, welcomed Francis enthusiastically.

“Her wealth of experience will benefit our team and she’s eager for this challenge. Birmingham Panthers is a new club in the Super league in the United Kingdom and even Francis’ resume was part of the whole development to say, yes, she was coming.

Johnson Haughton expressed unwavering optimism regarding Francis’ appointment and believes her preparation, motivation, and expertise will ensure she’ll make a significant, instant impact.

“Francis’ impressive achievements include guiding Jamaica’s Sunshine Girls to third place globally and winning Jamaica’s semi-professional league with her club Waulgrovians. Her unique blend of technical acumen and inspirational leadership will undoubtedly elevate Birmingham Panthers,” she said.

“I expect her to carry on; it is a new professional environment and culture that she is in but she is settling in Birmingham nicely. She is definitely looking for the challenge and it was something that she wanted,” Johnson Haughton added.

The new Super League season in England gets under in February 2025 and runs to October and Johnson Haughton said that Francis will be ready.

“It is a one-year contract and then they will take it from there,” Johnson Haughton, also a former player of the game, said.

“I have no doubt that she will do well. She is on location as we speak and they have started practising already. They have a few months to train, so that means she has a few months to prepare the team before the league starts. So, it is about familiarising herself with the players she have under her control,” Johnson Haughton ended.