England Netball has announced that four of their officials have been put up for nomination at the Sport Official UK Awards.
The ceremony takes place on Thursday 30th October in Daventry and England Netball will provide up to the minute updates live on the night.
Making the final three in the Performance Official of the Year is Gary Burgess. Consistently mentioned in discussions surrounding the finest umpires in world netball, Gary has taken the whistle at Commonwealth Games and World Championships Finals.
The popular official is currently in the southern hemisphere, taking charge of the action between Australia and New Zealand. He has been recognised for another sterling year which culminated in his selection to take charge of the final at Glasgow 2014.
Looking to double up on her recent Goalden Globe Awards victory will be Donna Beckett, nominated in the Official Coach/Mentor of the Year category. Donna has devoted herself to the development of officiating in Derbyshire and the East Midlands.
Her commitment to netball is outstanding. Donna works across all age groups, but especially focuses her attentions on helping young umpires develop and move along the England Netball Officiating Pathway.
Caroline Duggan is in the running for Community Official of the Year. Caroline supports umpires across Kent and is the first point of call for anyone wishing to further develop their officiating. She always offers support and advice when asked.
As an A Award umpire in Kent, Caroline does a large amount of umpiring to a very high standard. Caroline umpires across all Divisions of the England Netball Premier League, Regional League and Kent County games. Caroline still umpires in her local league to which she provides support to officials.
Representing netball in the Junior Official of the Year award is Georgia Morris. In November 2013, at the age of 15, Georgia passed her ‘C’ Award in umpiring with flying colours. Considering she is now only 16 years old, she has shown maturity in her umpiring beyond her years, and boosts the confidence of others in our club to excel in many volunteering roles.
Georgia has been enrolled by the Region’s Officiating Group on the Talented Youth Umpiring Programme so that she can receive more guidance as an umpire and to help her proceed more quickly along the officiating pathway. She has already embarked on training for her ‘B’ Award.
Follow England Netball on Facebook and Twitter on the evening of the awards to find out how the nominees get on.
