Women In Sport With Katie Catherall

In her latest Women in Sport column, Quest Media Network's Katie Catherall speaks to Alison Thomas, an experienced netballer and PE teacher, who uses both roles to inspire the next generation of athletes!

Now, more than ever, we are seeing the benefits of engaging in physical activity. This has become especially important for the likes of children and young people. 

This involvement of children in sport is something Alison Thomas believes firmly in, as she prides herself on helping the next generation in finding their love for sport. 

Having played Netball since primary school, Alison has experienced the benefits of exercise herself since a young age and has took this knowledge along with her in her endeavour to become a PE teacher. 

Ally and her twin sister began playing netball as children and often found they were highly competitive with one another. 

‘When we were younger there was always comparisons being made with us being twins and when it came to only one of us playing for a team, they chose my sister. But I wanted to play so badly that I would just pretend I was her so I could play!’ she says. 

As they got older, they began to play different positions and Alison found herself representing Manchester County and Manchester Thunder U19’s. She was lucky enough to play for Manchester Thunder when the team managed to win the super league, which she says is a ‘big achievement’ of hers. 

Making her Thunder debut against Strathclyde Sirens, Alison played with the team for two years and was able to train with ‘world class athletes’, giving her an all-round ‘great experience’. 

However, she found that it was a ‘huge commitment’ to play at that level whilst working full time as a PE teacher. 

Alison began her journey at Tameside Netball club, a group which she still holds great loyalty to today. 

‘I’ve been at Tameside for over 10 years now and have a massive loyalty to the club. I’ve watched it grow and witnessed the progress and development of so many players and young talents. I work with the young teams whenever I can, and I love being a leader there’. Alison says. 

She is currently the captain for the prem squad at Tameside Netball Club and loves doing whatever possible to help out. From conducting online netball and fitness sessions to leading elements of workshops for the club, Alison has a large involvement within the teams and loves to ‘give back’ with her experience. 

She says there have been ‘many barriers’ during the current lockdown, however being able to deliver these live PE lessons and sessions for Tameside Netball club has been a saving grace for her. 

Ally represented her university as a netball captain, and they were able to win the BUCS trophy twice. This experience only motivated her further in her studies of sport and her journey of becoming a PE teacher. 

‘I love my job and I love that I am inspiring the younger generations to take part in sport and activity!’