Netball Personnel Recognised in HM the Queen’s Birthday Honours

The recent HM the Queen’s Birthday Honours, gave recognition to several individuals within the sport who have made outstanding contributions in their fields. Among those recognised were former players, coaches, administrators and an umpire.

Former Silver Fern, Tracey Fear, had her achievements recognised when she was made Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for her services to the sport.

Tracey first became a Silver Fern in 1982 and was often referred to as one of the best defenders of her era. She would compete in two Netball World Cups, the first being in 1983 and the second in 1987, where she would help her side become World Champions.

Following her retirement in 1988, Tracey started coaching before turning to administration and the high performance side of the game. During her tenure as High Performance Director for Netball New Zealand, the Silver Ferns would win a World Cup, two Commonwealth Games gold medals and the Under 21s side won the Netball World Youth Cup.

Also recognised in New Zealand was Elaine Utting, who was awarded the Queen’s Service Medal. Elaine was recognised for her work with North Harbour Netball where she had spent over 60 years with the club. Elaine was also recognised for her work in the community.

Kathryn Harby-Williams AM (image credit – Netball Australia)

In Australia, former Diamonds captain Kathryn Harby-Williams was awarded an AM for her significant service to the sport. Kathryn has been involved in many aspects of the game as a player, coach, commentator and a board of director for Netball Australia between 2013-2017. During her time in the role, Kathryn oversaw the launch of the Suncorp Super League.

Clara Hicks was awarded with an OAM for her service to the sport. Clara is a recipient of the Netball New South Wales Anne Clark Service Award, which she received last year.

Sharon Kelly OAM

Also awarded an OAM for services to the game is umpire Sharon Kelly. Sharon has umpired at the very highest level for well over a decade and is currently a IUA Testing Panel Member (ITP). The INF caught up with Sharon a couple of months ago to discuss her illustrious career which you can read here.

Vicki Kerr was also awarded an OAM for her service to netball and to the community. A former player turned coach, Vicki has had many success in the sport including guiding the Netball New South Wales U21s to six consecutive national titles.

Freda Hutchinson MBE (image credit – Netball Scotland)

In the UK, former Netball Scotland Chair, Freda Hutchinson, was awarded an MBE for her services to the sport. Freda spent six years in her role with Netball Scotland which saw significant moments in the organisations history such as hosting the Netball World Youth Cup in 2013, participation in Scotland’s first Commonwealth Games in 2014 and launching a Netball Superleague Franchise, the Sirens.

Welsh Netball Vice President, Wendy Pressdee was awarded with a British Empire Medal (BEM) for her services to the sport. Wendy first started her career in the sport in 1976. She became the secretary of the Swansea league in 1982 and has been a manager of various teams for 19 years. Wendy has served on the Board of Welsh Netball for a number of years and travels the length and breadth of Wales to help ensure that competitions and tournaments take place

Congratulations to all who have been recognised.

Header image credit – Netball New Zealand