Margaret was well renowned for being an extremely passionate netty.

She dedicated almost 40 years of her 72-year life to netball. She viewed sport and the people in at as her second home.

Her involvement in netball was across almost every aspect of our game from grassroots to international!

One of her pinnacle and no doubt most memorable events would be her appointment to officiate on the bench at the 1999 World Netball Championships, with Otago friends Jan Wolf, Joan Hazelmore and Cynthia Wong.

This achievement in bench officiating came from her dedication to this area following a serious knee injury which prevented her from going any higher from her Provincial Badge. Margaret had achieved this in the 1980’s alongside her daughter Angella.

In bench officiating, Margaret also earned officiating opportunities in the ANZ, National Bank Cup, National Age Group Championships (including NPC).

Margaret’s passion for the game and these aspects was exemplified with her involvement on the Umpires Committee, Convening the Scoring and Timing Subcommittee and coordinating training for Bench Officials in Dunedin.

Not only did Margaret umpire and practice in benching, Margaret was a key driver and coach of netball at Broad Bay for years! She was often seen at the Edgar Centre umpiring and coaching her teams on Tuesday’s and Thursdays.

What’s more, this enthusiastic woman wanted more netball. She became involved in Southern Netball. Since 2001 she has been a stalwart of their club, administrating and supporting the club in their recruiting, selecting and managing during competition games. She was involved with managing the Magpies and Tui’s (formerly Southern A and B) since 2001.

Margaret’s growth in managerial expertise saw her also being the Manager of several Otago representative age group teams.

A lot of Margaret’s years were spent working with and being very responsive to Southern coach, Georgie Salter, and her coaching style which was innovative and unpredictable. Margaret was kept on her toes, and undoubtably thrived on chasing to keep up with the changes.

With “a sparkle in her eye” and huge passion Margaret brought energy and effervescence to every area she was involved in.  She was a “towering” asset and impacted on many players, coaches, managers, bench officials, umpires and administrators lives.

Margaret was awarded the Dunedin Netball Life Membership in 2015 for her incredible contribution.

Margaret’s legacy of dedication, commitment, warmth and what she has achieved in our game are a big part of the reason Netball in our community is alive, vibrant and an enjoyable place for future generations to enjoy.

Article added: Tuesday 04 December 2018