The Isle of Man under-17 netball squad travel to Dublin to compete in the Netball Europe U17s Championships next Thursday.

The squad, coached by Charlotte Christian and Emma Williams and sponsored by the Hooded Ram, will be the first Manx team to compete at international level since the Isle of Man left England Netball and joined Netball Europe.

For Manx Netball Association president Pip Cross and development officer Rachel Andrews this is the realisation of a dream with the Isle of Man now recognised as a country and allowed to compete internationally in its own right.

The 12-player squad, captained by Alice Cross with Lexa Hattersely as vice-captain, has been training hard not only on court but also in the gym to ensure they are in the best possible shape to be competitive in the tournament.

Once there they face a gruelling schedule playing two matches on Friday and Saturday and their final game on Sunday morning.

The competition is split into two sections, with the Isle of Man competing in the challenge section along with Malta, Switzerland, Gibraltar, Ireland and United Arab Emirates.

For the Manx Rams, their coaches and support staff this is a new experience, whereas all the other countries apart from UAE have competed in this tournament in previous years.

That said, preparations have gone well and all are confident that the team will put in strong competitive performances.

Team managers Deborah Evans and Marg McGee said: ’We are all excited to put ourselves to the test against other countries.

’We have had less than a year to prepare for this tournament, which is a big step up for our girls and we are very much in the development phase of our national squads at all age groups.

’Only by putting ourselves in the mix can we get a real idea of what our strengths and weaknesses are and we will be carefully analysing every aspect of this experience to help us develop at international level.

’The matches will be live streamed on the Netball Europe Facebook page and website, so we are hoping the people will log on and follow how the team get on.

’Regular updates will also be posted on the Manx Netball Association Facebook page.’

Isle of Man schedule:

Friday, March 2

10am IoM v Gibraltar

6.30pm IoM v Ireland

Saturday, March 3

10am IoM v Malta

7pm IoM v Switzerland

Sunday, March 4

11am IoM v United Arab Emirates

l Isle of Man Netball would like to thank sponsor, the Hooded Ram, whose generosity has enabled entry not only to this U17 Championship, but also European Senior Championships in May and u21 championships in October.

RESULTS: SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18

Manx Cup semi-finals

Ballasalla A 52-28 Route 1 A

PotM: Katie Williams

Missfits A 33-57 Simcocks Red

PotM: Rachel Johnstone

Manx Vase semi-finals

Thompson A 24-25 Ballasalla B

PotM: Molly Christian

Route 1 B 47-14 Marbree Motors

PotM :Amber Carridge

Manx Plate semi-finals

Thompson B 21-24 Castletown

PotM: Michaela Robinson

Simcocks Blue 29-39 Simcocks Green

PotM: Aalish Bridson

FIXTURES: SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 25

Premier Division

10am NSCRoute 1 Connections v SMP Ballasalla A

10am SNLSToomraiders v Simcocks Red

12pm NSCSMP Ballasalla B v Thompson I

12pm SNLSMissfits A v Route 1 Turbos

Division One

10am SNLSYoung Farmers A

v Manx Gems Rubies

11am NSCThompson II v Fencibles

12pm NSCCastletown Pink v Thompson III

12pm SNLSSpaniards v Marbree Motors

Division Two

10am NSCSMP Ballasalla C v Missfits B

10am SNLSRamsey v Manx Gem s Emeralds

11am SNLSSimcocks Green v Simcocks Gold

11am NSC Route 1 Sparks v Manx Glass Saints