SIT tutor in top umpiring squad

Southland's reputation as a breeding ground for top netball umpires has been further underlined with three southern whistleblowers set to officiate in next year's trans-Tasman netball competition.

The newest addition to the list is burgeoning Tokanui talent Kristie Broad, who has been included in the ANZ Championship's umpiring squad for the first time.

Broad joins fellow Southlanders Bobbi Brown and Jonathan Bredin in the squad and she expected it to be a big step up from provincial and club matches.

"Most of them are international umpires in the squad so there's a bit of pressure and a bit of expectation, but it's exciting."

The 23-year-old, who is a fashion tutor at the Southern Institute of Technology, has been involved with umpiring since secondary school and has gradually worked her way through the ranks.

At this year's national championships, played in Invercargill, she was rewarded for her consistent officiating with an umpiring spot in both the semifinal and final.

Broad has been selected as a tier-two umpire for the ANZ Championship, which means she will mainly be used in a reserve capacity. She should still get the odd match, though, during the season.

"I'll mainly be on the sideline doing my turn ... When I do get a chance, I will do the best I can do."

Southland's Colleen Bond, who is a Netball New Zealand umpire panel member, said Broad was a promising umpire with a big future ahead of her.

"She's progressed really well and has a really good temperament. She's very calm on the court and has a good understanding of the game ... She's only going to get better."

Broad's selection in the ANZ Championship umpiring squad is even more remarkable when you consider she was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma last year. She was forced to undergo four months of chemotherapy followed by radiation treatment, but has recovered and said she was doing well now.

Her focus in the coming years is to get her International Umpires Award and, hopefully, go to the world championships.

There will be no rest for the talented young umpire during the off-season. As well as carrying out her fitness work for the netball season, she is also getting married next month. Being a keen fashionista, she is designing her own dress.

- © Fairfax NZ News