Court

On the second lesson we look at the court, dimension and marking.

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The Surface

As the surface of the court greatly affects the speed of the game it is best played on a court with a hard surface. A porous, tarmacadam, or asphalt surface is the most suitable, being neither slippery nor holding puddles.

Hard rolled hot or cold ash, concrete or wood are also suitable surfaces. A loose top dressing should be avoided, since it is difficult to land safely from a jump. Although in some countries it is possible to play the game on a grass surface, in England grass is most unsatisfactory, and should only be permitted in an emergency.

Dimensions and Marking

Length, 100 ft. (30 48 m). Width, 50 ft. (15 24m)

The two long lines are called side lines the two short lines goal lines. Court is divided down side lines by two transverse lines into three equal thirds, named centre third and goal thirds.

Goal Circles. A semi-circle in each goal third; centre, middle of goal line; radius, 16 ft. (4 88 m)

Centre Circle. Circle drawn in the middle of the Centre Third. Diameter 3 ft. (914 mm)

The court, thirds and circles are marked clearly with lines. Lines must not be more than two inches wide. They should be painted with a hard wearing paint or, if temporary, with whitewash or distemper, or by laying adhesive tape.

The width of the side lines and the goal lines are included in the above measurements, for the whole court; the width of the circle lines is included in the radii of the circles and the width of the transverse lines is common to both adjacent areas.

It will be noticed that metric measurements have been placed in brackets after British measure, since most International Federation of Netball Associations member associations have not yet metricated.

The metric measurements as proposed are not all exact equivalents, and this will affect post manufacturers and court markings. For those countries which have started or completed the change to the metric system, it does not mean that existing posts and lines must be im-

mediately discarded.

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