Will to Win: New Zealand netball greats on team culture and leadership

by Andy Martin, Lana McCarthy, Geoff Watson

Overview

This book is a fascinating deep-dive into the development of the Silver Ferns’ traditions, the evolution of team culture, and the nuts-and-bolts of leadership at an elite level. Legendary players and coaches—including Lois Muir, Leigh Gibbs, Bernice Mene, Ruth Aitken, and Casey Kopua—candidly discuss the highs and lows of their careers, and of the Silver Ferns, the effect of the intense rivalry with Australia, coping with gut-wrenching losses, and the resilience of players and coaches. For the first time the perspective of these key actors is the subject of serious analysis, and Will to Win offers a real insight into the psychology of a women’s high-performance team. As such, it provides a practical guide for developing team culture and leadership for netball coaches at all levels. It also includes comments from Farah Palmer on women in sport and leadership, and a brief history of New Zealand netball, including the gains and losses as netball moved into a semi-professional era, and the struggles for sponsorship and for media recognition, despite it being New Zealand’s most popular team sport.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780995113558
Publisher:	Massey University Press
Publication date:	08/02/2020
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Dr Andy Martin is a professor of sport management and physical education in the School of Sport, Exercise and Nutrition, Massey University. Dr Lana McCarthy is a lecturer in teacher education at Charles Sturt University. Dr Geoff Watson is a senior lecturer in the School of Humanities, Massey University.

Table of Contents

Introduction 7

Part 1 A love of netball 11

Lana McCarthy 12

Farah Palmer 19

Betty Steffensen 23

Part 2 Nurturing and creating a team culture 1960-1987 29

Taini Jamison 33

Joan Harnett 43

Lois Muir 53

Lyn Gunson 73

Part 5 Development, rebranding and commercialism 1988-2001 89

Leigh Gibbs 93

Lesley Rumball 115

Bernice Mene 133

Part 4 Growth and athlete-centred semi-professionalism 2002-2019 143

Ruth Aitken 149

Julie Seymour 161

Casey Kopua 175

Part 5 Legacy 187

The development of the Silver Ferns 190

Team culture, leadership and the emphasis on winning 217

Major event statistics 238

Notes 240

About the contributors 247

Acknowledgements 248

Index 249