TWO professional umpires from England Netball will officiate in the Riffa Views Inter-Gulf Netball Championships, to be played on March 7 and 8 at the Bahrain Rugby Football Club in Saar.
Elaine Wright and Barbara Wilkins, who are both England Netball 'A' Award umpires, will call all the top-level matches in the competition and act as tournament referees.
They will also train local umpires in the lead-up to the tournament and coach some of them to qualification level. This will be done as part of the Bahrain Netball League's development plan.
"I am delighted to represent England Netball at this year's tournament in Bahrain," said Wilkins, who previously attended the last tournaments in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
"I have watched the growth of the Inter-Gulf Championships with admiration, and I am amazed by the huge improvement in the standard of play across the Gulf over the last few years."
Wright commented: "I am passionate about the development of netball in the region and I am looking forward to training some of the young Bahrain players.
"Umpiring is a core skill and an essential part of the game; I feel confident that we will be in a position to test the girls in Bahrain and award the best of them with accreditations by the end of our stay."
This year's championships will be the biggest tournament in the 22-year history of the event.
Twenty teams representing seven Gulf countries will compete for the Championship Cup, Plate and Bowl. In addition, a 'talent and performance team' from England will compete in the elite 'Invitational Cup'.
"We are expecting the highest standard of teams this year and it is vital for us as organisers to achieve this by providing professional umpires," said national league event manager Michaela Milne. "We are delighted that England Netball will be represented at our event by Barbara and Elaine, and we look forward to our players receiving valuable umpire training in the lead-up to the event."
The England Netball umpires will fly to the kingdom courtesy of Gulf Air, the tournament's official airline.
For more information, contact Milne on +973-36600308 or e-mail: kylamilne@mac.com.
