Shore Rovers Netball Club

Shore Rovers Netball Club Inc. is the oldest and largest club on Auckland’s North Shore, est 1953. She is also our Club Patron. Fascinating!

CLUB HISTORY

Shore Rovers Netball Club is the oldest club on the North Shore originally playing under the name of “El-Jay” for 1 season before changing its name to Shore Rovers Netball Club. At that time (1952) there was no North Harbour competition, the girls had to cross the bridge to play in Auckland. When netball competition started on the Shore, the Shore Rovers team moved from Auckland to h

elp establish the competition, this was in 1953. The Club started with just one team and has grown to the current day with on average 14 teams per season, making it the oldest and one of the largest Clubs on the shore. A member of that original team, Fay Chapman, still comes down to the courts on a Saturday to watch our teams play. The name El-Jay came because the founding ladies worked at El-Jay Foundation which was a fashion factory in Milford circa 1591/1952. When the boss found the girls playing basketball at lunchtime he had a chat to them about using some leftover material to make some uniforms... thats where the green and yellow came from. They changed the name to Shore Rovers the following year when they joined the brand new centre at North Harbour in 1953, this was due to people thinking they had to work at El-Jay to be able to play for them. Gus Fisher (the owner of El-Jay) was the New Zealand licensee for Christian Dior, which gave him the exclusive rights to manufacture and sell Christian Dior originals and Christian Dior prêt-à-porter in the New Zealand market. Find out more about that here Click here …/gus-fisher-el-jay/

With the advent of the National Club Competition in the 80’s, only the top Club team in a region was able to challenge for a place in the National League. Shore Rovers sat in the shadow of Carmel for a number of years until the Club finally worked its way to the top and challenged and beat Carmel for its place in the league in 1989. In 1994 the Club was ranked 3rd and gained a very high profile within the media, both television and newsprint. In the period 1994 – 1995, Shore Rovers consistently achieved a top four placing and came 2nd in both 1996 & 1997. In 1998, the new Regional Franchise competition was formed. This tipped out all top players from Club teams throughout NZ to go into the Regional Franchised Teams. This effectively wiped out Shore Rovers Team 1 as Rovers were at that time the top team in NNH. From 1998 - 2003 the top Shore Rovers team was a Social Team of ex-Rep players who decided to step away from Regional competition and play only at Club level. This team has seen the Club proud by consistently being in the top three teams at Netball North Harbour. The Shore Rovers Team Red finally retired in 2006. Over the years we've had some great Premier coaches; Margaret Burgess, Yvonne Willering, Bella Panoho, Helene Wilson (Mystics coach 2017) and Ripeka Albert (Beko assistant coach 2017). Shore Rovers 1 won the Premier 1 competition in 2015 and 2013, after spending a few years getting back to the top and our 2nd team have spent the past few years in and out of premier 1. You can see more about our grade placings under the "club awards and recognition' page. The Club has been under the guidance of President, Kelly Cameron for the past 8 years. Kelly received her 20 year loyalty badge in 2016 and has held numerous roles such as Secretary, VP and Coaching Coordinator. The club is a very well run unit due to it's great committee and long service of members like Vice President Renee Fougere (10 yrs loyal) and Jan Nicholson (Life Member, 25 years loyal), Lynne Rosandich (Life Member, 18 yrs loyal) and current Secretary Rachel Stiff (10 yrs loyal).

Photos from Shore Rovers Netball Club's post

25/05/2026

Some of our well deserved POD’s so far

21/05/2026

Netball New Zealand has appointed Jennah Wootten as its new Chief Executive, bringing one of New Zealand’s most experienced sports and major events leaders to the helm of the country's largest women's sport.

Wootten joins NNZ from Aktive where she has served as Chief Executive since 2021. She brings experience spanning some of New Zealand's most significant sporting events, including the role of Chief Executive of the highly successful World Masters Games 2017, which featured 28,000 participants across 28 sports.

Read More >> https://bit.ly/3RRkePY

08/05/2026

Absolute champions.

Imagine being a super supporter for a club fundraiser. What a bunch of great club people we have.

You are the real MVP’s 🥇

Rewards coming to our top individual and team sellers soon!

24/04/2026

Our April Newsletter is here!

This newsletter includes grading results, introductions to our incredible coaches and team management, information for the upcoming season and more!

▪️Grading Results & Placing
▪️ Coaches & Team Management
▪️Season Dates
▪️Cheese Fundraiser
▪️Complaints process & Court Etiquette
▪️Club Merchandise (tees, bags, hoodies)
▪️Celebrating Member’s Achievements
▪️Sponsorship Information
▪️Contact Information

Shore Rovers Netball Club April Newsletter 🏐💚 This newsletter includes grading results, introductions to our incredible coaches and team management, information for the upcoming season and more!

22/04/2026

Development 1 reporting for duty in Senior 2 🤝

17/04/2026

With the 2026 winter season already underway, a reminder about some of the rules we have at Netball North Harbour. We would appreciate cooperation from our members and spectators ...
This applies to the Northcote complex, Westlake Girls Courts, Hibiscus Coast and Warkworth courts ...
👉 No Dogs (except for service dogs)
👉 No bikes, scooters or other things that can be ridden with wheels
👉 No smoking or va**ng. This includes the carpark at Northcote, but from the field you may smoke.
👉 No stilleto heels on the courts at Northcote as they are rubberised, or in the Arena
👉 Do not lean on umbrellas with the pointy end in the green court surface at Northcote
👉 In the Arena - no food or drink, except for water

AND ... NO JEWELLERY IS TO BE WORN BY PLAYERS AND NO TAPING OF JEWELLERY (INCLUDING EARRINGS). All jewellery and other adornments are to be removed, or the player cannot take the court, and this includes our Primary players. Please get your ears pierced after the netball season.

These rules are there for the enjoyment and safety of all our players and spectators. Enjoy the season ...

13/04/2026

Anything but a drink bottle 👀

10/04/2026

Cheese Fundraiser..
We know! How good!

WHAT: We’re selling cheese packs through a fundraising page.

https://raised.nz/f/preseason-cheese-fundraiser

Each pack includes a 5-pack of artisan cheeses (approx. 300g total):
Creamy Havarti
Classic Gouda
Peppered Havarti
Chilli Havarti
Cold Smoked Havarti
Pecorino

You’ll receive a selection of 5 of the 6 cheeses (5 x 60g portions).

Shelf life: Approx. 6 months

AUCKLAND ONLY - PLAYERS WILL NEED TO ARRANGE DELIVERY TO THEIR BUYERS AFTER THE FUNDRAISER IS FINISHED

If you have someone who would like to contribute financially but doesn’t want cheese, or is out of Auckland, they can simply donate to our account:

Shore Rovers Netball Club
12-3026-0011262-01
Particulars: CheeseDonation
Reference: Team number/player

HOW IT WORKS
Each player is asked to sell a minimum of 2 packs
Each team should aim to sell at least 20 packs
Supporters can purchase directly through the online link
Orders and payments are handled through the platform

KEY DATES:
Start Date: 18 MARCH
End Date: 29th APRIL
Cheese delivered approx. 2 weeks after and players will be responsible for delivery to their buyers.

WHAT TO DO: - Share the fundraiser link/QR/brochure with your networks (family, friends, socials). Keep track of who you are contacting

When sharing the link, make sure you let buyers know - your name, your team name (essential for tracking)

This fundraiser will make a real difference for the season ahead, and we appreciate everyone getting behind it and encouraging each other.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to our Sponsorship and Fundraising manager [email protected] 0211400811

31/03/2026

Check out our March newsletter!

Shore Rovers Netball Club March Newsletter 🏐💚 This newsletter includes important updates and news, introductions to our amazing committee, and the information you need to know for grading and more!