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Why don't men play Netball?
And this is coming from a bloke... I have just always been curious, as to why us men have never really played Netball, and why it has come to be seen as a feminine sport? It's not that I have any great desire to play the sport, but what about it doesn't appeal to men? It seems a fairly fun looking sport; I know about basketball and handball and whatnot, but if we play those, why not Netball?
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Original post by Phipp91
And this is coming from a bloke... I have just always been curious, as to why us men have never really played Netball, and why it has come to be seen as a feminine sport? It's not that I have any great desire to play the sport, but what about it doesn't appeal to men? It seems a fairly fun looking sport; I know about basketball and handball and whatnot, but if we play those, why not Netball?
My opinion, as a former professional in basketball is that netball is just a very lazy kind of sport! Saying more straight - this is a horrible version of basketball (I am sorry for Netball fans, no offense). I mean I tried myself several times to play netball and btw this is totally wrong, Philipp, that males do not play this sport, but it is just incomparable against the real basketball. I can't stand the rules that you are not allowed to use the whole field, but just play within zones, you are not allowed to dribble and the worst is no blocks!
On the other hand, I can understand for example if you are really keen about basketball, but for some reason you do play well, than yes Netball is an option.
They do: http://www.theguardian.com/sport/video/2015/apr/17/mens-male-mixed-netball-championships-video
It has the uncomfortable association of being a woman's sport, so is naturally unpopular in a world where gender is an issue. It is played but is completely amateur.
I played it a little at high school in our compulsory PE lessons. I don't mind the zonal aspect to the sport. I played WD or WA and found that there was always a lot to think about in terms of positioning with and without the ball. I think netball is quite dense and strategic in the non-goalscoring areas and reckon that a visionary coach can really make the difference in the same way as a good football manager might.
My problem is the way the game slows down at the point of shooting and that contact is completely disallowed. It gives a large GS or GA a ridiculous advantage. It robs the sport of a bit of drama that you can find in comparable sports (basketball, handball).
With basketball for women being increasingly popular, and korfball being probably a better casual sport, I can't see netball for men really penetrating the consciousness of the world.
It has the uncomfortable association of being a woman's sport, so is naturally unpopular in a world where gender is an issue. It is played but is completely amateur.
I played it a little at high school in our compulsory PE lessons. I don't mind the zonal aspect to the sport. I played WD or WA and found that there was always a lot to think about in terms of positioning with and without the ball. I think netball is quite dense and strategic in the non-goalscoring areas and reckon that a visionary coach can really make the difference in the same way as a good football manager might.
My problem is the way the game slows down at the point of shooting and that contact is completely disallowed. It gives a large GS or GA a ridiculous advantage. It robs the sport of a bit of drama that you can find in comparable sports (basketball, handball).
With basketball for women being increasingly popular, and korfball being probably a better casual sport, I can't see netball for men really penetrating the consciousness of the world.
Original post by Phipp91
And this is coming from a bloke... I have just always been curious, as to why us men have never really played Netball, and why it has come to be seen as a feminine sport? It's not that I have any great desire to play the sport, but what about it doesn't appeal to men? It seems a fairly fun looking sport; I know about basketball and handball and whatnot, but if we play those, why not Netball?
My opinion:
It's not really seen as socially acceptable for men to play a previously female-only sport such as Netball. It's an example of Feminism going just a little too far, another example being that girls are now overtaking boys in education.
I don't even know why women play netball
PE from year 7-9 was awful because practically every session was netball whilst the boys did rugby/basketball/football etc. Only in year 10 years, after all the girls begging, we were allowed to do basketball wow
Basketball rules
Netball ain't cool'ss
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PE from year 7-9 was awful because practically every session was netball whilst the boys did rugby/basketball/football etc. Only in year 10 years, after all the girls begging, we were allowed to do basketball wow
Basketball rules
Netball ain't cool'ss
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I always imagined netball as basketball-lite, I mean, the rules are different but the objectives are the same.
Original post by emiloujess
My opinion:
It's not really seen as socially acceptable for men to play a previously female-only sport such as Netball. It's an example of Feminism going just a little too far, another example being that girls are now overtaking boys in education.
It's not really seen as socially acceptable for men to play a previously female-only sport such as Netball. It's an example of Feminism going just a little too far, another example being that girls are now overtaking boys in education.
Can I ask you to elaborate on what you mean by this?
Original post by Illiberal Liberal
Can I ask you to elaborate on what you mean by this?
I just meant that as a result of (sometimes extreme) so-called Feminists, girls are now at an advantage in several aspects of life. For example, if a man hit a woman then they would be called every name under the sun but if a woman hit a man, the man's masculinity would be questioned, or he feared it would be. I didn't mean anything rude by it, as I am a feminist myself. I just think that feminism should be about equality not about women taking over men as a minority seem to think
Original post by Phipp91
And this is coming from a bloke... I have just always been curious, as to why us men have never really played Netball, and why it has come to be seen as a feminine sport? It's not that I have any great desire to play the sport, but what about it doesn't appeal to men? It seems a fairly fun looking sport; I know about basketball and handball and whatnot, but if we play those, why not Netball?
Perhaps due to its origins. It was developed at a time when teachers were beginning to notice the advantages of sport in schools for boys, and to look around for something that women could do - see
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_netball
From the start, netball was developed as a women's sport: existing outside the sphere of male-dominated sports, netball did not encounter the initial social opposition that faced women in other sports in the early 20th century.[20] Women's participation in netball in the early 20th century was widely accepted, as the sport avoided physical contact and did not involve male participation.[21][22] The sport spread substantially through the school systems of many netball-playing countries
and
Netball traces its roots to basketball. Basketball was invented in 1891 by James Naismith, a Canadian physical education instructor working in the United States, who was trying to develop an indoor sport for his students.....Women teachers became interested in Naismith's game soon afterwards. Senda Berenson, a physical education instructor at nearby Smith College, read an article on Naismith's game, and in 1892 adapted his game for her female students.[3] Berenson devised rules that maintained feminine decorum and slowed down potentially "strenuous" play.
Original post by emiloujess
I didn't mean anything rude by it, as I am a feminist myself. I just think that feminism should be about equality not about women taking over men as a minority seem to think
I agree, but I meant what did you mean by feminism going too far in relation to men playing netball?
Original post by Illiberal Liberal
I agree, but I meant what did you mean by feminism going too far in relation to men playing netball?
Netball is traditionally seen as a female-only sport, so boys might not want to play it for fear of being called names by their classmates, and having their masculinity questioned. (It might not happen but you know how mean some people can be)
Original post by emiloujess
Netball is traditionally seen as a female-only sport, so boys might not want to play it for fear of being called names by their classmates, and having their masculinity questioned. (It might not happen but you know how mean some people can be)
I agree; there is no doubt a certain stigma attached to males that play netball. However, I don't see how this in any way related to feminism (even less so how the stigma attached is "an example of Feminism going just a little too far" ) ?
Original post by Illiberal Liberal
I agree; there is no doubt a certain stigma attached to males that play netball. However, I don't see how this in any way related to feminism (even less so how the stigma attached is "an example of Feminism going just a little too far" ) ?
This is frustrating because I know what I want to say but not how to word it
My nine year old brother plays netball and he absolutely loves it. His school offer it as an after school club and there are at least five boys who go.
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Original post by emiloujess
This is frustrating because I know what I want to say but not how to word it
Don't worry, it's not that important
Original post by Illiberal Liberal
Don't worry, it's not that important
I guess what I'm trying to say is that there are now female football and basketballs teams, etc, but it's still not always socially acceptable for boys to play traditionally female sports?
Original post by emiloujess
I guess what I'm trying to say is that there are now female football and basketballs teams, etc, but it's still not always socially acceptable for boys to play traditionally female sports?
I think that that's something that works both ways; it's still not always socially acceptable for girls to play traditionally male sports. I don't think that this stigma is related to feminism at all - those that judge men that play traditionally 'female sports' are likely to be other men, rather than women (and even if it were women, I still don't see how the stigma attached would be because of feminism).
(edited 8 years ago)
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