Netball girls grab the world’s attention

Netball girls court the world’s attention with naked shoot for calendar

A team of netball players have stripped off for a naked calendar to raise money for their student club.

The girls from Bristol University showed they were game for a bit of fun by posing with nothing but netballs to cover their modesty.

And the Facebook group set up to publicise the £7 calendar has already received thousands of hits.

The athletes have now had to add to their initial print-run of 250 after overwhelming levels of interest.

Politics student Maddie McKenzie, 19, organised the shoot and was one of the 20 girls who took part.

She said: ‘The response we’ve had has been absolutely amazing.

‘The support we’ve had has been fantastic, especially from our families and friends.

‘I’m not sure my parents knew what to expect when I told them I was in a naked calendar, but hopefully they won’t be too shocked.

‘We’ll see when I give it to my family members for a Christmas present.

‘Some of the pictures are a little bit saucy but it was a lot of fun.’

She added: ‘We did it to raise money for the club, and although we do have sponsorship we needed more money to help with running costs.

‘We initially ordered 250 calendars but we’ve already had to order some more – the interest has been amazing.’

Another model, second-year medical student Molly Thorpe, said: ‘There were a lot of nerves when we first started and it felt a bit strange to be naked but when we relaxed it was great fun.

The 19-year-old added: ‘As a club we have to self-fund and because we’re students we don’t have a great deal of money so this will go towards helping the club.

‘The cash that we raise will go towards hiring courts, paying for balls and equipment as well as paying for fitness classes.’

The calendars, which cost £7 for one or £10 for two, will be available to order from the club’s website: www.bristoluninetball.com.