Bahrain Falcons defeated Bahrain Pearls 10-2 in an exciting final on day two of the Bahrain Netball 40th Anniversary Tournament at the Bahrain Rugby Football Club (BRFC) yesterday.
The Falcons had finished on top of the five-team table on Friday after winning all four of their round-robin league matches and continued that fine form into the final day of the tournament by defeating Bahrain Gems 18-5 in the first semi-final before making short work of the Pearls in the final to lift the glittering trophy.
The Pearls, who won three of their four games to finish second in the table on day one, had entered the final after beating Saudi Netball – the sole non-Bahraini team in the tournament – 14-6 in the second semi-final.
An enthusiastic audience, which had packed into the main stand at the netball courts, cheered on the teams as they sweated it out in the heat.
The tournament was held to celebrate 40 years of Bahrain Netball (BN) which, earlier this month, took its first step towards receiving official recognition from the government with the Bahrain Tennis Federation (BTF) taking it under its umbrella.
Saudi Netball, which is one of the newest netball federations in the world, were special invitees to the event with chairwoman, Princess Ghada bint Abdullah Al Saud specially flying in to Bahrain for the tournament.
“This is the first time I have attended a Bahrain Netball event and it’s been an amazing experience for me and my girls,” Princess Ghada told the GDN in an exclusive interview after the awards ceremony.
“This is our first tournament outside Saudi. I’ve really enjoyed the experience and we learned a lot. I wish Bahrain Netball a very happy 40th anniversary.
“We started Saudi Netball in 2021 so it’s been nearly two years and now, we’ve introduced the sport in schools and universities. This year, we had more than 500 girls and women playing netball all across Saudi Arabia – and that number is going to rise exponentially as time goes on.”
The Saudi Netball team which participated in the BN 40th Anniversary tournament was comprised almost entirely of expats – as, indeed, were the four Bahraini teams – but, Princess Ghada said, with interest in the sport increasing manifold in Saudi Arabia, that was likely to change.
“The next time we come here, our team will be comprised entirely of Saudi players,” she said.
Meanwhile, BN president Khulood Sabah – who also captained the Falcons and received the winners’ trophy from the General Sports Authority’s (GSA) sports affairs advisor, Hassene Ikhlef – told the GDN that she was really proud of all the participating teams.
“I’m really proud of all the teams that turned out,” she said.
“The tournament turned out to be great for spectators. We’re really grateful to our core crew, the BN executive committee and the BRFC. I think we pulled it off well together and it was just phenomenal.”
Tournament director Jo Reed, who has been a part of Bahrain Netball since she moved to the kingdom from England in 1984, told the GDN the enthusiastic crowd support had added to the festive atmosphere in the tournament.
“The fans really create a great atmosphere, makes it better for the players,” she said.
“The results were great for Bahrain Netball: first, second, third and fifth (Bahrain Gazelles). I think that really shows the commitment from everybody and two days of really great netball.
“Netball is a great team sport and you learn an awful lot from team sports. Netball’s given me a lot over the years and I’m honoured to be able to give something back. It was great to see all the youngsters coming through as well. For many of them, it was their first tournament, so long may that continue.
“And it was wonderful to have Saudi Netball take part in the tournament. This was a return visit. We went to them in Riyadh earlier in the year and it was great to have them back here with us. We’re looking forward to seeing their netball journey and supporting that in any way we can.”
Final standings –
Champions: Bahrain Falcons; Runners-up: Bahrain Pearls; 3rd place: Bahrain Gems; 4th place: Saudi Netball; 5th place: Bahrain Gazelles
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