How an ANZ Netball Grant is helping TCD Netball honour netball legend Marlene Flavell

  • 28/06/2022
  • Sponsored by - ANZ

In 2019, netballer Chloe Murray had the ambitious idea of launching a new powerhouse premier netball club in Mount Maunganui.

Just a year later the idea was a reality with the club's first competing team in the 2020 season. Now TCD Netball is in its third year and has two competing teams of 22 players aged 16 to 35 in the premier competition, and this year it received an ANZ Netball Grant to help it continue to grow.

In those early days, Murray sought advice from her friend Marlene Flavell, an absolute legend of high performance netball in New Zealand and to her delight Flavell agreed to coach. 

Flavell has been involved with the sport for 65 years and is a Netball New Zealand Service Award holder, an Auckland Netball life member, and in 2016 she was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to netball. 

"Marlene is amazing. She's definitely someone you want to work hard for, at training and in games I really feel like I'm playing for her. We're so lucky to have had someone of her calibre with her experience and knowledge as part of the club," Murray said.

TCD Netball.
TCD Netball. Photo credit: Supplied

Flavell turned 80 this year and is looking to reduce her involvement with the club, so TCD Netball is seeking assistance in helping to fill the void she leaves. 

ANZ has come to the party. The bank is a massive supporter of netball in Aotearoa, from grassroots to the elite players in the ANZ Premiership and the Silver Ferns.

The club received an ANZ Netball Grant for new gear including training and match balls, spot markers, training bibs, a gear bag and ball carry bag. ANZ is also helping by providing professional coaching courses for Murray and Ephraim Ormsby, a top flight male netballer who plays for the mens' Mystics and is set to take over as head coach in 2023.

TCD Netball received an ANZ Netball Grant for new gear including training and match balls, spot markers, training bibs, a gear bag and ball carry bag.
TCD Netball received an ANZ Netball Grant for new gear including training and match balls, spot markers, training bibs, a gear bag and ball carry bag. Photo credit: Supplied

To honour Flavell's legacy, ANZ is also sponsoring a new award: the Marlene Flavell Trophy, to be awarded annually to the club person of the year. 

"That is going to be very special to have in the club as something people can work towards through the year. It's also a really good way to honour Marlene and what she's done," said Murray.

Over the last decade, ANZ has awarded over $1 million in netball grants throughout Aotearoa. They are there to help clubs and schools with anything they need to stay in the game - from essential training gear and uniforms to money-can't-buy experiences.

"Having ANZ's support and their belief in a club like ours, it's really huge," said Murray.

"I've built this club from the ground up and it's so humbling to receive the grant. It's like a reward for all the hard work that has gone into this club for the last three years, so it's really awesome."

This article was created for ANZ.