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Robyn Broughton, the figurehead of southern netball has passed away.
Broughton, one of this country’s most formidable and highly successful netball coach’s lead the Southern Sting to a string of first place and runner up titles over several years in the Coco-Cola Netball league then National Bank league in the halcyon days of professional netball between 1998 – 2007.
During Robyn Broughton’s tenure as head coach many of this country’s top Netball players like Sandra Edge, Bernice Mene and Donna Loffhagan, (as she was then)to name a mere few were attracted south to be part of her winning formula. A formula which captured the hearts and minds of Southlanders who regularly packed out the old Stadium Southland to see these and other top players in action. Great days, and nights!
During this time Robyn Broughton was also active as a netball coach at Verdon College with the school’s top team winning national titles in 2001 and 2007.
She also coached what became the Southern Steel for the first four seasons of the trans-Tasman league, twice getting them into the semi-finals.
Robyn Broughton’s coaching skills were in hot demand coaching the NZ team to a win in the National Fast League title in 2010 and coaching a World 7 to victory over Australian in 2009 and three years as assistant coach to the Silver Ferns.
Broughton also had a stint coaching the Central Pulse for four years.
She also coached professionally in Britain coaching the Hertfordshire Mavericks in the UK’s Netball Super league.
Broughton was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to netball and the community in the 2004 New Year Honours. In the 2012 Queen’s Birthday and Diamond Jubilee Honours, she was promoted to Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to netball. source Wikipedia
A statement from Netball NZ reads “Robyn Broughton was an incredible woman that gave a huge amount to our game, the most successful domestic coach in our history, winning seven titles in the National Bank Cup,”
“She was a Netball New Life Member, Silver Ferns assistant coach and a mentor to many of the coaches who now in the Netball NZ High Performance system.
“She had a huge impact on the players and people she came in contact with her and made Southland the true home of Netball in her time.”