"Old and tattered equipment doesn't make you feel as motivated. It doesn't mean you have to have the best of everything but good quality gear makes a difference. Even the quality of netball can come down to team morale and affect how you play."
Tess says these new uniforms will give the senior students the boost they need to feel good going into the UNISS competition after not being able to attend the last couple of years due to Covid.
"I wanted the team to feel pride in their uniforms, and looking good does come down to feeling proud and representing yourself."
Being a small school of 400, Thames High School students often play multiple sports to make up numbers, and Tess says this grant will help to alleviate the costs that puts on families.
"It's really hard in a small, rural beach community because grants and fundraising are really scarce for us and we don't want to ask the students to pay lots of money."
"We want our students to enjoy playing sports and not worry about the financial burden."
As a lover of netball, Tess took it upon herself to be the teacher in charge.
"I find encouraging young people into sports is something I'm really passionate about. I've always played netball, and one of my passions is participation in sport," Tess says.
ANZ general manager marketing Matt Pickering says: "We're proud to support netball from the grassroots clubs and schools in the Coromandel Peninsula to the elite players in the ANZ Premiership and the Silver Ferns.
"Community netball has had it tough over the last two years so we hope ANZ's support makes it easier for players to continue playing the game they love.
"We know it's the clubs and schools across the country that help to nurture the next generation of players and we hope these grants give teams a boost and fill them with the confidence to play their best game." - Supplied content
