SMH S. Keoghan 20.5.21
Keoghan said "netball has dropped from 4.5% participation- & a spot in Australia's top 10 sports- to just 2.8%".
M. Go, Chair of Netball Australia, says netball has been losing out to soccer & "AFLW" (sic); & that both these sports, & athletics (?) are growing.
Go also said
"We don't want to lose that talent to other sports because some of the skills are transferrable, particularly a a young age".
(Because both AF & netball require constant use of one's hands, it could be inferred that Go sees AF as a bigger threat than soccer, to netballs' GR nos.).
Netball’s big challenge is staying number one in women’s sport, says new boss
Marina Go, the new chair of Netball Australia board, says netball is under threat from the recent growth of rival rugby codes, soccer and and AFLW.www.smh.com.au
Female GR AF is booming in Qld.- & it appears that in Qld. (& other States) it is getting many/most of its players from netball.
I think you would find that across the country atm. AFLW is an increasingly high profile female sport with far more exposure than most of the other traditionally international sports girls have traditionally been offered. Now AFLW is another viable option for young girls to play and one that has a clear pathway and that is well resourced. While I don't want sports such as Netball hurt with lower participation levels, it is up to them to adapt to survive. I think choice is always a good thing.