As the GS in IMG netball’s most successful team for the last two seasons, Carla Shorrock has seen her fair amount of success. Economics A are notorious for their organisation, flair and ruthlessness on the court which led to an unbeaten season in 2007/8.
As a Languages student, it seems strange that Carla would end up playing for her apparent rivals. However, her path to IMG was not a simple one.
“I started playing netball as soon as I went to Cardiff. I had played netball all the way through school from the age of 10, either GA or GS, and I knew I wanted to continue at Cardiff. I went to join Cardiff University netball but didn’t have any money on me for the fees!”
Having found her path blocked, she turned to the IMG on the advice of a friend.
“Someone suggested the Economics team as Languages didn’t have one. I turned up for training during Fresher’s Week and fitted in straight away.” The rest, as they say, was victory-fuelled history.
Despite having one of the highest scoring records in the league, Carla attributes her personal achievements to the rest of her team.
“Econ A are well organised and we contact each other regularly throughout the week. The fact that the team has been so outstandingly successful has been a great added bonus.”
“Some of our games have been thrilling! Training and games can sometimes clash with lectures but I didn’t miss one game last year”
The social side of IMG is something that Carla enjoys, and the link up with other IMG teams on socials is something that she recommends to freshers wanting to meet new people.
“On a Wednesday evening after fixtures, teams have the opportunity to meet up for socialising – which is great for a fresher as it means meeting even more people because joint socials with football teams and other netball teams are arranged.”
“Netball, for me, has been one of the most enjoyable things at Cardiff University. I have really enjoyed every game and have made more friends in different years and subjects areas as a result”
Carla will not be playing in the IMG league again this year as she is on ‘Erasmus’ in Italy then Spain. However, she is unsure whether her time away from Cardiff will allow her to continue her participation in netball.
“I don’t know whether netball is such an integral part of university sport in these two countries. I have yet to find out, but finding somewhere to live is my priority at the moment!”
This does not mean the end of her IMG career though; she fully intends to return to Economics in her fourth year and is looking forward to seeing how they progress during her year off.
For now though, Carla wishes Economics A the best of luck and continued success for the 2008/9 season and says she “will be thinking of the team and will keep in touch.”
