The Brunei national netball team nicknamed Royal Bees,[1] is the national team representing Brunei in international netball competitions. The team is currently coached by Jane Searle,[2] and captained by Princess Fadzilah Lubabul Bolkiah.[3] As of 2 December 2022, Brunei are 34th on the INF World Rankings.[4]
 Logo of the Royal Bees | ||
| Nickname(s) | Royal Bees | |
|---|---|---|
| Association | Brunei Netball Association | |
| Confederation | Asia Netball | |
| Head coach | Hafizah Sidek | |
| Captain | Fadzilah Lubabul Bolkiah | |
| World ranking | 34 | |
| ||
| First international | ||
Brunei  26 – 26  MaldivesSugathadasa Stadium, Sri Lanka, 25 August 2012 | ||
| Largest win | ||
Brunei 91 – 13  PakistanSugathadasa Stadium, Sri Lanka, 26 August 2012 | ||
| Largest defeat | ||
Malaysia  72 – 11 BruneiSugathadasa Stadium, Sri Lanka, 29 August 2012 | ||
History edit
Brunei made its international netball debut during the 2012 Asian Netball Championships, where the first game ended in a 26–26 draw with Maldives. They then made their biggest win by thrashing Pakistan in a 91–13 victory, but only to suffer 76–18 and 72–11 defeats, by Singapore and Malaysia respectively.[5]
At the 2015 Southeast Asian Games, the national team of Brunei secured a bronze medal for being one of the two semifinalists.[6] Brunei repeated this feat again at the 2017 Southeast Asian Games for finishing as one of the semifinalists. In the 2017 edition of the Games, Brunei was guided by Sri Lankan coach, Thilaka Jinadasa. Before the regional stint, they went to Kota Kinabalu and played a series of matches against the Sri Lanka School Team in April 2017[7] and played exposure matches against Singaporean netball teams in Singapore in May 2017 as preparation.[8]
Alongside Singapore and Pakistan, Brunei has been pooled into Group 'C' of the 2018 Asian Netball Championships in which they finished sixth in the tournament.[9] Brunei took part in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games which was held in Laguna, Philippines.[10] They returned from the tournament with bronze medals with Prince Sufri Bolkiah as the awardee.[11] The Royal Bees participated in the 2022 Asian Netball Championships which was held in Singapore. The team again concluded the tournament in sixth place after a final 51–42 win over Maldives at the OCBC Arena.[12]
Players edit
Ten players were selected to participate at the 2022 Asian Netball Championships.[13][14]
| Philippines national netball team | ||
| Player | Position | Height (cm) |
| Siti Marhayati (captain) | GA | |
| Zuraidah Amit | C | |
| Siti Nuril Nazihah | GD | |
| Nurul Ajeerah Abdullah | GK | |
| Nurulain Abdul Hamid | GS, GA | |
| Norros Hafizah Zanuidi | WA | |
| Amirah Fazzeratul Hidayah | GA | |
| Hidayah Puteh | WA | |
| Siti Faizah Azni | GS, GD | |
| Ummi Ramizah Jeluddin | WD | |
| Noor Zinatul Azimah | WD | |
| Wong Jo Lin | - | |
| Isabel Maria Pia Vele | GD | |
Coaches edit
| Coach | Years |
|---|---|
 Thilaka Jinadasa[1][15]
|
2011–2018 |
 Jane Searle[2]
|
2018–2022 |
| Hafizah Sidek[13]
|
2022–present |
Competitive history edit
| Southeast Asian Games | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Championship | Location | Placing |
| 2015 | 2015 Southeast Asian Games | Singapore | 
|
| 2017 | 2017 Southeast Asian Games | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
|
| 2019 | 2019 Southeast Asian Games | Laguna, Philippines |
|
References edit
- ^ a b Yee, Chun Leong. "Royal Bees Falls to Thailand". BruSports News. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
- ^ a b Yunus, Fadhil. "Brunei's new netball coach eyes steady progress in Terengganu series". Borneo Bulletin Online. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ^ Wang, Meng Meng. "A touch of royalty in Brunei netball team". The Straits Times. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ^ "Current World Rankings". World Netball. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "Brunei Darussalam National Olympic Council". www.bruneiolympic.org. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ Yee, Chun Leong (3 August 2017). "National Netball Team eye podium finish at SEA Games". BruSports News. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
- ^ "Brunei National Netball Team Ready For Sri Lanka School Test". International Netball Federation. 3 April 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
- ^ Hassan, Khairil (15 May 2017). "Netball team Singapore bound to gain exposure". Borneo Bulletin. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
- ^ "Her Royal Highness to lead Brunei national netball team in Asian meet". borneo363.rssing.com. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "National netball team aim to win medal at 2019 SEA Games » Borneo Bulletin Online". National netball team aim to win medal at 2019 SEA Games. 2019-11-04. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "National netball team wins bronze medal » Borneo Bulletin Online". National netball team wins bronze medal. 2019-12-03. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "Brunei finish sixth in Asian netball meet » Borneo Bulletin Online". Brunei finish sixth in Asian netball meet. 2022-09-12. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ a b "Asian Netball Championship 2022 | Brunei's No.1 News Website". www.brudirect.com. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "Brunei lose to Malaysia in opening ANC match » Borneo Bulletin Online". Brunei lose to Malaysia in opening ANC match. 2022-09-04. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "Brunei National Coach, Thilaka Jinadasa, leaves post after 7 years". International Netball Federation. Retrieved 12 November 2019.