The Netball Show
S7 Ep85: Anna Carter (07th Nov 2024)
(upbeat music) - Hi, this is Nat Metcalf. Flyhawk have developed a unique 3D kit designer that's fully customizable. So if you're looking for a new kit for your team for the new season, visit flyhawk.com or email info@flyhawk.com with your ideas now. - Nation Player is the easy to use, one-stop radio and audio app. Download Nation Player now on the Apple App Store or Google Play. Nation Player, where on are you? - The net will show with flyhawk, raising the bar for netball and winning sports. - It's a netball show with flyhawk, delighted there's always a catch up with Anna Cardiff. Anna, welcome back to the podcast. - Thank you, it's been a while. - Let's start first on, obviously, how will you feel personally on when you first started leading up all the academy to where things are now? - I mean, when I think about, you know, the start of the business and we started in COVID and obviously there were challenges there. And then we went again after COVID and it's a completely different beast. And the demand for quality academies is definitely out there, along with quality coaching and everything that the academies can give players. I think there's a real appetite for it, but also like any business you set up, it definitely goes in a direction that you don't anticipate. So doing things like going on to where we're 49 girls to Australia over the summer, was certainly something I didn't envisage when the company was started and also working with great partners as well. We sport an experience and yeah, it's just great new planning university contract. And I could go on and just really exciting partnerships and we both had value to each of those long term goals. - Wanted to get you onto the talk about those three coach CPD sessions. Obviously, academy is going to relaunch as well and residential candidates coming up. So first, let's look at the CPD sessions by three times Super League champion, Matt Panagari, what an opportunity. - Yeah, well, to be honest, they've all sold out now. I think there's just a couple in leads that haven't sold out. I think they've got two places on it. - Be quick, eh? - Yeah, well, that's it. And we'd like to do it again. I think for us, you know, the strap line's always been about driving standards and creating an opportunity to the network community. We get that sometimes, you know, life or commitments don't afford us to be able to put the money behind investing in our own personal journey and coaching and, you know, roll out every night of the week and so on and so forth. So we just thought, you know, we've had so much support from everybody in the network community. So let's give something back, give coaches an opportunity where they can come along, see one of the best in their natural environment, which is coaching. That's a brilliant coach, as well as a brilliant person. Anyone that's worked with Nat will know that she loves giving back and she's just fabulous. Everything she does, let's be honest. - I wanted to also ask you about the coaching conference videos. Obviously we've seen that online as well. So how did they go? - Yeah, the coaching conferences went really well. I mean, we had the in person conference and again, people's time we saw precious, isn't it? But we actually sold probably double the number of video footage of the conference. So that's been really well received. And then we've done other things like engaging Dan Ryan on culture pieces 'cause, you know, he's probably regarded as his culture. King is really great at setting values and team culture and character and all those wonderful things that are modern in today's game. And again, really well received. So, yeah, we've got up and coming one on the 20th of November and that's really looking at the basics, how we drill out the basics, what we're looking for when we put skills and drills out to the players that, you know, it's always got to relate to what we're looking to get out there on court. So yeah, so far the signups have been really good for that one and looking forward to getting more people involved in that as well. - Obviously, plenty of new drills and ideas all the time really is head court as well. So what was that like when you spent time in Australia? I expect that you still managed to learn from your time there as well. - Oh, it was amazing. I mean, we worked with, you know, some of the best coaches in the world with Brainy and Lisa Watson and Steph, you know, it was just what an opportunity. And I think for us it's just making sure that we're staying relevant and modern and coaching the modern day game is really important to me. So when any player or coach steps into our academy, they know that they're entering a quality environment with up to date knowledge and up to date drills and skills. So yeah, we just got every minute we could from any coach or a player that we work with who could offer some knowledge. - Good to see that elite netballacademy.co.uk improving their members area as well. And you've added a one-to-one session for midi's? - Yeah, I mean, the one-to-one's again, I think we saw you, aren't we? And players are to, you know, going into coaching sessions or club sessions and there may be 25 of the people there. The coaches only got so much time to give to a player or to the environment that they're working in. And I think what I love about one-to-ones is the coaches are doing. He's having that time with an athlete to really focus on them and what they need and also the feedback that they get from their coaches, being able to look at it and just give them that, you know, little bit of extra advice or a drill that really elevates that area of work. So I love long-to-ones because we just don't get that time, unfortunately, they're athletes. - And what about those residential camps as well this year? They're returning. So here you almost 40% sold out. How about some of the dates? - Yeah, we sold out last year. So we did two sessions at Queen Ethel Burgers and they sold out 75 players on each of them. So we had a lot of people saying, "Oh, when are you going to come down south?" So we set one up at Cheltenham, ladies' college as well. And again, that's been really well received. Normally we have a mad dash after Christmas or just in the run-ups of Christmas period where people are thinking about what extras they can add on Christmas day. So we have a bit of a flurry between now and Christmas and also after Christmas as well. So looking forward to seeing new and old faces at residential camps again this year. - I like the idea that this next online workshop for you is Nail in the basics. Who's it for? - Yeah, it's for any coach, really, because we'll escalate the drills. So there'll be a starting point and an escalation of the drills where we'll take it and how we make that drill relevant to the on-court situations. Being on a number of conferences and online workshops myself, the really I end and I think it's sometimes nice to see how you may build up to that and what drills are relevant to our ages and how we break them down. And we don't just make a drill a drill. It's always, always got to relate to what we're seeing out there on court. - Good to see as well that if you can't actually make it live, the ticket purchase will include a recording as well. So it's just one of those things where I'm making it more accessible for all, if you can't obviously make it in person. I know it as well. - Yeah, we're all super busy, aren't we? And I think the other thing is with myself and my coach in is I sometimes go away and you forget some of the information or you didn't have time to write it all down or you've got like just do with memorizing kind of or upskilling myself on what was said in that online. So I think being able to go and just use it as and when it's relevant for you and the pleasure of coaching is great. You know, to reflect back, I mean I still watch the Centre Pass Defence online workshop we did with Nat Panagari because I think, oh God, I just can't quite remember what she said about that aspect of the game. And, you know, so for me, it's just a library of information that I can keep going back to. And I think that's what we're trying to create in our members area. It's just a great library of information from quality coaches, quality players that coaches who are continuously trying to do the best for the players that they're working with can go back to support and help them. - I mentioned in that she's written a great blog about defending in Nepal. I'm not going to spoil it, but just being able to have that as part of the site and just really, really great read really, isn't it? - Yeah, and I think just varied ways of engaging people, you know, I love our members area and what it does. I know my daughter likes reading the blogs. So I just think it's just a different way of connecting with people and getting information out there. It's always a good thing. - And I'd great as always to catch up. My information has always elitenetballacademy.co.uk. Thank you again. - Thank you. - Thank you. - We appreciate it. - The Netball Show is now also available via SkyQ and Sky Glass. select sports and we're on the podcast's rail.
Anna Carter brings us up to date with everything that's going on at Elite Netball Academy