Jaegers Lose Again As Katie Says Thrill Gone

Newcastle Herald

Saturday February 10, 2007

By NEIL GOFFET

RISING star Katie Bradstock is the latest player to turn her back on the Hunter Jaegers, leaving the club with a vastly inexperienced team heading into the 2007 national netball league.

Bradstock, 23, was one of the more senior members of the new-look Jaegers squad but will join a growing list of former players after citing a lack of enjoyment as the reason for sitting out this season.

One of the most inspirational athletes in the short history of the club, Bradstock will be sorely missed after the retirement of fellow centre Raegan Jackson at the end of last season.

"I dropped out because I was not enjoying the sport anymore," said Bradstock, who joined the Jaegers in 2005.

"There is a massive increase in the training schedule this season.

"It has gone from three nights a week under [former coach] Maria [Lynch] to six nights a week with [current coach] Jon [Fletcher].

"It is just too big a commitment, especially when you more or less play to be with your friends and hardly any of them are still playing.

"It is hard to hang around people for so much of your time when they are not the same age and don't have much in common with you. I guess there is a bit of a trend happening at the moment with players not wanting to play."

Bradstock refused to blame the new coach for the trend, saying it was more a lack of money to assist the players, who have to make such a big commitment. Players are on contracts of between $500 and $6000 a season and gain $100 a game, provided they are in the squad of 12.

Bradstock is the eighth player from last year's squad that will not be playing, for various reasons, this season.

At the top of the list is former captain Jane Altschwager, who was controversially sacked by Fletcher at the end of last season.

Fletcher said of Altschwager's sacking: "No fault for previous performances; we felt she was a good contributor to the program, but we just thought the new group was the way to start heading."

Foundation coach Lynch lured Altschwager to the Hunter as the star signing in 2005, but Fletcher said he and the captain were not on the same page.

Foundation players Annabel Gazzoli and Kimberlee Gilmour did not apply to play again this season. Cirsty Monaghan was another who did not reapply this season and Kimberley Purcell decided to join the Sydney Swifts after spending the past three years travelling to Newcastle to play.

© 2007 Newcastle Herald

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