Commonwealth Games Scotland has today announced that the Scottish netball team has qualified for this summer’s Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Currently ranked eighth in the world, the Thistles finished the year on a high after beating Barbados on home soil in December with a dominant display, something which Head Coach Tamsin Greenway believes will hold them in good stead this summer.  “It’s going to be a very busy but exciting few months as we head towards the Commonwealth Games later this year.

“Playing against Barbados at the end of 2021, cementing a top 12 ranking and qualifying for the games was the first aim. Now that has happened we can look forward to building and preparing for the competition.”

Captain Claire Maxwell who led the squad at both Gold Coast 2018 and the 2019 Netball World Cup said “We are ecstatic about qualifying for the Commonwealth Games. It is a pinnacle event in our calendar and we do not take qualification lightly or for granted. The squad are working exceptionally hard to ensure we compete with the highest distinction at Birmingham this summer.”

Vice Captain, Emily Nicholl said “Scotland’s qualification for the Commonwealth Games, in what is our only multi-sport event, is  hugely important to the Scottish Thistles. We couldn’t be more excited about the prospect of playing in front of what is essentially a home crowd.

“We are an ambitious team who have big long term goals but first we must at least match our world ranking which is something we didn’t manage to achieve in 2018.

“Our qualification is just the beginning of our Commonwealth Games journey. We have a really close-knit player and management group and we are going to relish every moment from now until the games start to ensure that when that first whistle goes, we are ready to achieve our goals.”

Team Scotland Chef de Mission, Elinor Middlemiss said “I am delighted for the players, coaching staff and everyone at Scottish Netball that the qualification for Birmingham 2022 has been secured. It is set to be a fantastic competition at the NEC and I have no doubt that the Scottish public will get behind the girls both at home and in Birmingham.”

The netball competition runs from 29 July to 7 August at the NEC Arena, where Scotland will join Australia, New Zealand, England, Jamaica, South Africa, Malawi, Uganda, Wales, Trinidad and Tobago, Northern Ireland and Barbados in the competition.

Scotland fielded a netball team for the first time at a Games during Glasgow 2014, having climbed steadily up the rankings over the previous four years.