KEY FEATURES
Each year up to 25 athletes are selected to the performance programme, covering the top two BUCS teams of the Netball Club. All athletes within this programme gain access to the performance programme services as well as the below:
- Full pre-season training programme:
- 2 x netball specific court sessions per week
- Wednesday BUCS matches in Premier South competing at the highest University level
- Weekend netball in England Netball Premier 3 with Exeter Netball Club
- Specialist coaching including team and unit play
- Up to 5 x S&C sessions per week including weights, recovery, conditioning, speed and agility
- Weekly video and team analysis sessions including access to the Performance Analysis Suite and HUDL.
- Individual player reviews
- Mentoring for our aspiring student-coaches.
HEAD OF NETBALL Laura Rudland
Laura has spent a number of years coaching full time and leading Netball programmes in schools such as Clifton College and Millfield. Whilst in these roles she also coached the Severn Stars NOVA academy that was based in Bristol. Laura has also been involved with coaching at club level and performance camps.
Laura has competed in the Netball Superleague for the last 8 years for Team Bath, Severn Stars and more recently Celtic Dragons where she has spent the last 3 seasons. Laura is looking forward to working with the athletes at the University of Exeter and we can't wait to see her pass on her knowledge.
PERFORMANCE COACH Denise Ellis
Denise has been Head Coach of England U17 and U19 netball age group squads and England National Academy Assistant coach, winning many Netball Europe competitions over 15 years. A former Head Coach of the National Welsh Senior squad including through the 2007 World Championships most recently Denise was Assistant England U21 Coach and went to Botswana for the World Youth Cup where England won a Bronze medal. She now supports Gibraltar with netball coaching and their preparations for the U21 World Youth Cup. With previous experience in a University having set up a High Performance Programme for netball at College St Mark & St John and having run the High Performance Netball programme at the University of Bath, Denise continues to support Laura with running the University performance netball programme and is Head coach for the Exeter Netball Premier League 3 side.
d.a.ellis@exeter.ac.uk
The University of Exeter Sports Scholarships Scheme offers a comprehensive support services package including a programme of support and financial benefits for exceptionally talented student athletes. Scholarships and Bursaries are awarded annually to those who show evidence of competing at national or international level.
- Up to £3,000 financial support for sporting expenses
- A support services package worth up to £3,500 (including S&C, performance analysis, physiotherapy and athlete lifestyle support) as part of the performance programme
- A Sports Scholarship mentor from the performance programme
Scholarship applications are open from October – May each year. Netball scholarship applications will be considered for prospective students competing at International level. Those competing at Superleague or NPL level will be considered for a Bursary.
Our Sports Scholarship and Bursary Application Form for 2025 Entry can be found here. Contact: Sport Scholarships sportscholarships@exeter.ac.uk 01392 641313
FACILITIES
The University of Exeter Netball performance programme train and compete all of their University, England Netball Premier Division 3 and South West Regional league matches in the sports hall at the Sports Park. All performance athletes have access to the Athlete Development Centre (ADC) for their S&C sessions. Refurbished and expanded in 2014, this bespoke high-performance facility provides an optimum training environment for the University’s elite athletes with netball specific S&C programmes led by UKSCA accredited coaches.
The Alumni Golf Society Performance Analysis Suite offers a specialist space for team feedback and individual review meetings including access to SportsCode Gamebreaker software, HUDL sharing platform and presentation/display options.
STUDYING AT EXETER
The University of Exeter is renowned for its academic excellence, establishing itself in the top 1% of Universities worldwide (The Times World University Rankings) and placing 19th in The Complete University Guide UK rankings.
The University has four campuses, two in Cornwall with two in Exeter, closely located to the thriving commercial city centre and large St David’s train station. The University currently has around 23,000 students, of which almost 5,000 are international students. In total, the University hosts students from over 130 different countries making for a truly vibrant and inclusive academic community.
CHRISTINA SHAW
"Having graduated from Exeter this year I couldn’t be happier to take the next step in my netball career. To get a Super League franchise contract has always been a sporting goal of mine and I can’t wait for the season to start with Celtic Dragons in 2021, especially with last season ending so abruptly. My development throughout my time on the University of Exeter High Performance Programme and as a Sports Scholar has been key to getting me to this stage and I can’t thank the University enough for all of their support over the years. I look forward to seeing what the Celtic Dragons team can achieve this season!” BSc Biological Sciences 2016-2020
2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games Wales Seniors Celtic Dragons Vitality Netball Super League Squad 2020-2021