Netball: Grassroots matches are making a return in September

Grassroots netball in England is making a return, with leagues restarting from Saturday 26 September.

Like many other sports, netball was impacted by the lockdown put in place following the coronavirus outbreak in March.

England's national netball team has already made a return to the court, with players starting training from mid-July.

Other grassroots sports like cricket and football have already begun playing matches again.

However, club netball has been on hold for the last six months.

Players had previously been allowed to take part in very restricted training, but the government has now given the go ahead for the return of the sport. It means matches can be played within clubs and between local teams.

Grassroots netball will look quite different, but if the appropriate measures are followed, matches will come back at the end of next month and could even see socially-distanced crowds attending too.

Some new measures have been introduced to ensure the sport is played in as safe a way as possible.

Players who are marking opponents now have to be at least four feet away from them, instead of the usual three.

Fran Connolly, who is the CEO of England Netball, said: "We are delighted to be taking a significant step towards seeing netball in its fullest form return. I know the netball family have been itching to get back on court and the time is nearly upon us."

Are you a netball player? How has lockdown affected you and how do you feel about playing again? Let us know in the comments.