Lessons learned as Rosie Harris comes home to help Leeds Rhinos restore Vitality Superleague pride to Yorkshire

It would be a stretch to suggest that the women of Leeds Rhinos Netball Club hold the future of the sport in Yorkshire in their hands, but there can be no doubting the importance of the roles they are about to undertake.
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When the Rhinos tip-off in the Vitality Superleague this coming Friday night, it will represent Yorkshire’s second chance at cracking the netball elite.

Nine years ago the Yorkshire Jets were elevated into Superleague as netball sought to tap into the huge geographical presence of a county rich in sporting pedigree.

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Within four years the Jets were gone; their franchise status revoked, England Netball would “continue to work with Jets and the wider Yorkshire netball community” they said.

LET'S GET GOING: Leeds Rhinos' Rosie Harris.. Picture: Tony JohnsonLET'S GET GOING: Leeds Rhinos' Rosie Harris.. Picture: Tony Johnson
LET'S GET GOING: Leeds Rhinos' Rosie Harris.. Picture: Tony Johnson

It was a kick in the teeth for those that had worked so hard to create an elite team that could be the pinnacle of the pathway for the netball youth of Yorkshire.

Without it, those players had to go elsewhere.

Take Rosie Harris for example.

A talented sportsperson through her childhood – she was told she was too tall for diving and discovered she was too nesh for hockey – Harris learnt netball under Alex Kirk at Leeds Grammar School and by age 16 was training with the Yorkshire Jets first team and representing England at Under-17s level.

BUILDING UP: Leeds Rhinos netball team pictured during a training session at the YMCA sports complex in Lawnswood, Leeds. Picture: Tony Johnson.BUILDING UP: Leeds Rhinos netball team pictured during a training session at the YMCA sports complex in Lawnswood, Leeds. Picture: Tony Johnson.
BUILDING UP: Leeds Rhinos netball team pictured during a training session at the YMCA sports complex in Lawnswood, Leeds. Picture: Tony Johnson.

By age 18 the Jets were gone and Harris, like many other homegrown players, was at a crossroads.

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“I certainly would have stayed in Yorkshire if the Jets or a different franchise had been here,” says Harris, ruefully.

“But I had to leave Yorkshire to continue my netball career.”

She did so in Loughborough, playing in Superleague for three years, learning alongside some of the best players and developing self-belief in her abilities thanks to the coaching of Karen Atkinson.

Leeds Rhinos netball new signing, Tuaine Keenan, right. Picture: Tony JohnsonLeeds Rhinos netball new signing, Tuaine Keenan, right. Picture: Tony Johnson
Leeds Rhinos netball new signing, Tuaine Keenan, right. Picture: Tony Johnson

But at 21, a niggling knee injury forced her away from netball, and as a long-distance running enthusiast she fell into triathlon.

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“I wanted to try something completely different,” she says.

“It was just a case of go for it with triathlon and put your name forward. There was no real talent, I just backed myself.”

Modesty is clearly a character trait of Harris, who within a year was representing Great Britain for her age group.

Leeds Rhinos' Rosie Harris searches out a pass during training at the YMCA sports complex in Lawnswood, Leeds. Picture: Tony JohnsonLeeds Rhinos' Rosie Harris searches out a pass during training at the YMCA sports complex in Lawnswood, Leeds. Picture: Tony Johnson
Leeds Rhinos' Rosie Harris searches out a pass during training at the YMCA sports complex in Lawnswood, Leeds. Picture: Tony Johnson

Netball had become an afterthought until the Leeds Rhinos were accepted into Superleague.

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“I was really enjoying the triathlon training and could easily have carried on with that but when I found out about Leeds Rhinos it is such an amazing opportunity to be playing in Leeds, for a Superleague team back in the area,” says Harris. “It was too good an opportunity to pass up and I was honoured to be selected and be able to train and play with the team.”

The responsibility on the shoulders of Harris and her team-mates – from England Roses international like Jade Clarke to fellow Yorkshire-born stars like Brie Grierson – is not lost on the 22-year-old.

“Rhinos is going to be so important for the sport in Yorkshire,” says Harris, who, typical of the versatility of her sporting background, can play in a variety of positions on the netball court.

“There’s so many girls within the Yorkshire region who might have had to travel down to Loughborough or up to Northumbria to play at the elite level, but with us having a centralised Leeds Rhinos hub it will provide easy access for an enormous pool of talent within Yorkshire. So you’re going to see more and more local players come through the ranks.”

And the following is already there.

READY AND WAITING: Leeds Rhinos netball head coach Dan Ryan.  Picture: Tony JohnsonREADY AND WAITING: Leeds Rhinos netball head coach Dan Ryan.  Picture: Tony Johnson
READY AND WAITING: Leeds Rhinos netball head coach Dan Ryan. Picture: Tony Johnson
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“Within the first week of the team being announced we had 1,000 followers on Instagram and we all know how important that age range is for growing a sport,” continues Harris, mindful of how much of a role the England Roses had on the increased interest in netball with their Commonwealth Games gold medal back in 2018.

“It’s a real priviledge to be the first girls to put that stamp on the Leeds Rhinos.

“Whatever inspiration younger athletes take from it, it’s going to be a real honour.

“I love Leeds, it’s a real proud moment to be able to play and train in Leeds.”

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So what lessons are there to take from the demise of the Yorkshire Jets and not repeat with the Rhinos.

Anna Carter who coached the Jets was instrumental in re-establishing elite netball through the Rhinos before leaving to pursue other interests a few months ago.

She had said in the past that the lack of infrastructure and a professional inexperience within the Jets, was the Achilles heel.

Harris was too young to know the politics when she left, but the club she has returned to suggests a lot of those concerns have been addressed.

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“The set-up at Leeds Rhinos is so good, they’re not going anywhere any time soon. As we build as a squad, as a team and as a culture it’s only going to get bigger and bigger and build and build,” continues Harris.

“Rhinos rugby fans are very loyal, hopefully it’s the same with the netball followers.

“It was gutting to lose the Jets. We’d grown up and trained in the region and that was always an aspirational goal to play in Superleague, so when that was taken away it did dampen the spirits.

“But Rhinos is a well-established sporting name with men’s and women’s rugby. There’s momentum to be gained from all that.

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“It really does feel like it will go from strength to strength.”

Starting, they hope, in 2021.

A new era for professional sport in Yorkshire begins on Friday, February 12, at 5.15pm when Rhinos tip off against Celtic Dragons.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, all matches will be played behind closed doors and in two bubble venues; latterly the Copper Box on the London Olympic Park and for the first nine weeks of the season, at Studio 001 in Wakefield, Europe’s first arena-sized production rehearsal studio.

Suddenly Yorkshire is the epicentre of English netball again.

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As a mark of the sport’s growing popularity, every game will be screened live via Sky Sports’ many channels, a deal that was announced this week.

“The growth has been phenomenal since the Commonwealth Games victory,” says Harris.

“There’s so many girls now looking at netball as a viable career which previously couldn’t have been done.

“But the sport has grown to a point now where we can be full-time athletes and we are taken seriously.

“Participation is booming.”

And this is Yorkshire’s chance to get it right.

It’s a netball family affair

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Rosie is not the only Harris in Vitality Superleague – the 22-year-old is one of three sisters who are all netballers.

Elder sister Lucy plays for Severn Stars, while younger sister Molly is captain of Northumbria Under-21s and is likely to be playing in Superleague next season.

But the sporting tradition of the family does not stop there. Younger brother Jack Harris is on the books of rugby union side Leeds Tykes. Together the sisters proved very resourceful in the coronavirus-enforced lockdown.

“We set up a coaching business called NetU during lockdown which basically offers online Zoom sessions,” explains Rosie. “We do personal sessions, we do multiple coaching sessions, player appearances and online programming.

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“We’ve got a few girls from the Severn academy doing all their online training through us. It’s picking up which is nice and it keeps us busy. We set it up in March because we thought there was going to be such a lag from so many girls and teams around the country.

“We were able to allow clubs to continue training online. It’s been really rewarding. And for me I love the sport of netball and giving back to the sport.

“Especilly doing so in Yorkshire as well, it’s a real honour for me. I’m proud to give back.”

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