Trial Tips and Tricks for Helping you Excel and Succeed

Written by Jenni Monger | Level 2 Netball Coach, NET Founder

Whether they are for a new team, new club or even to retain a space in your current squad, we all feel the pressure of trials. The opposition is often unknown, and there will be a lot that you cannot control at the trial itself which is often where a lot of the anxiety and nerves come from. But there is so much that you can do to help you prepare for the big day to help you to calm your nerves, be at peak performance and ensure that there is nothing left to give when the trials come around. 

Weeks Leading up to Trials

If you are looking to use your trials to progress your position in a team, it is important that you take some time to be self reflective on your previous season and be mindful of the things you felt you achieved on and off the court and those things that you feel might need some improvement. This can give you a good indication on what you should be working on in your training leading up to the trials. 

For example if you are a shooter, the main thing you need to be able to showcase is your accuracy. Reflect on your season: where you more accurate under post or further away? Under fatigue or in the first 5 minutes of each quarter? With shorter defenders or with long arms over the shot? When pressured by the score line or when you were ahead? Think about when your accuracy was less consistent and work to improve this over the weeks leading up to trials. 

It is always a good idea to include strength and conditioning training into your training schedule. This will help you to maintain or improve match fitness, and help to prime your muscles to compete at the next level and help to prevent injury – SO IT IS IMPORTANT! However it is ultimately a NETBALL trial, therefore the more time you can spend on the courts, with a ball, catching, throwing, moving, shooting, changing direction the better you are going to be! The best advice I can give is not to neglect your court based training leading up to a trial, make sure it is prioritised! 

Know Your Position 

At any trial, you should have been asked to previously submit at least two positions that you play. Knowing that you will playing these positions on the day can really help you to prepare not only physically but your mindset aswell. Before going into the trial, set yourself two clear goals for the game for each position. These goals should be linked to the MAIN skills you will need to demonstrate to prove that you can play that position well! 

Here are some ideas for positional goals:

GK – Ball side / Two Footed Jumps on Body

GD – Pressure on first phase / Recover quickly 

WD – Pressure on first phase / No circle edge feeds

C – Strong passes from 1st pass / Create the width through court

WA – 1st phase option / Circle edge feeds 

GA – Early 2nd phase set up / Balance the circle 

GS – Ball side / Confident to shoot 

You might try writing your goals on your hand or even writing them on a post-it note and sticking it to your water bottle so that you can make sure you have it to refer to at all times! When you’re feeling nervous, just remember these goals and revert to basics! It is always about doing the basics well! 

Managing Your Expectations 

There is a lot that might not go our way at trials therefore it is important that you have some clear expectations for yourself and what you perceive to be a success. Think about what your best outcome would be and what other outcomes you would consider a success. For example, if you are looking to trial for a new club your ‘best outcome’ might be that you are successfully entered into the performance ‘A’ squad for your age group. However your other ‘successful’ outcomes might be that you are 1. Accepted into the club 2. Feel supported by the coaches 3. Feel there is room and opportunity to progres – therefore your trial has been a success. 

Remember, it is important that you take time to trial the club or squad as well. Make sure that you like the coaching environment, take time to speak to the players and the coaches and get a feel for how you might fit into their environment. Depending on what you are looking for in a club, it is important that you take time to consider whether the team or club is the right fit for you too. Are they performance focused or are they open to all? Is there room for development and progression or are teams set? Are they friendly and inviting or are they strict with clear expectations? Are they inclusive? Different people have different expectations from a club and/or need different things form their club environment; it is important that you take some time to reflect and decide what it is you would like and then ensure you trial and/or accept a position for a club that provides these elements too!

Overall trials are a great opportunity to showcase what you can do, take an opportunity for yourself to try something different, and add another branch to your netball journey. Try not to allow them to consume you with anxiety or to let the pressure get to you too much. The most important thing on the day is that you show up knowing your worth, you try your hardest, and you have fun! Because after all, when we have fun, we pay our best netball!

Good luck!

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