A few entries ago I mentioned that I would be joining the 3rds netball team. Now I want to give freshers an insight to what being in a team is like:

In a week we have either one or two matches. It’s down to individuals to choose whether they are available to play which means that you can fit in a sport around your other commitments and can become as involved as you’d like to be.

The home grounds for LSE are in zone 6 of London at Berrylands. The down-side of this is that it takes 30 mins from Waterloo to get there but this never seems long once you’re catching up with your teammates. With the majority of matches taking place on Wednesdays it makes a really nice break in the week to take your mind off studying.

With netball there are 8 different teams. Ours has around 16 people in the squad, with 7 or 8 signing up to play each game. We play in two leagues, one is a London league, the other is a university sports league which means we play teams out of London too.

There is a termly fee to join your sports team which varies according to the club but is usually around £10 or £15. But fortunately travel costs to matches are paid for by the School so you end up covering your costs for membership when you play in matches. You just have to keep your tube travelcard tickets and provide them as receipts at the end of term to get your money back. One cheeky advantage of this is that you also get free travel around London for the rest of that day too!

As for the sport itself, I’d really recommend it to others. It’s a great way of getting to know people who aren’t on your course. Plus you build up a strong comradery which is unique to being part of a team. For me, it’s been really refreshing to play netball again. I’ve enjoyed non-team based fitness activities but have missed the competitive and tactical element found in netball. The standards are really high and so it’s not hard to find a team that will stretch your limits.

Sports at LSE definitely has a strong nightlife associated with it but being a part of that is not compulsory. It’s up to you whether you’re there until the lights come on at closing time at Zoo bar or if you’re tucked up in bed in anticipation of a 9am class the next day.

So my advice for any freshers looking to get involved at sport at LSE is definitely to go for it! If you decide that you haven’t got enough time, or that you’d rather play another sport later in the term, then that’s fine. But most importantly give it a go!