Serena Guthrie: A career at the top

  • ITV Channel TV's Keilan Webster reflects on the career of netball star Serena Guthrie.


Jersey netball star Serena Guthrie is calling time on a 14 year career at the highest level of the sport.

The Roses captain says she has taken the difficult decision to bring forward her retirement following the news that she is expecting her first child later in the year.

It means she will not compete in the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham or the domestic season with Team Bath in the Vitality Netball Superleague.

Regarded as one of the greatest mid-court players to play the game, Guthrie collected 110 senior caps in her international career, captaining the side a total of 28 times.

Jersey Jets coach Linda Andrews was there at the very beginning of her career and says it has been an honour to see her grow.

"I've been so lucky to have been a part of it," she said. It's just immense pride. To think that somebody from our little island has gone on, she's become the best in the world... it just seems madness to say that."

Guthrie was called up to represent England in 2008 at the age of just 18.

She would go on to cement herself as an instrumental figure in the Vitality Roses team, playing a key role in three world cups and two Commonwealth Games.

The 2018 Games proved to be the pinnacle of her playing career, as she helped her Roses teammates secure a gold medal on the Gold Coast, with an historic win over hosts Australia. 

The following year, she captained England in a home Netball World Cup in Liverpool where they won a bronze medal, having been pipped by eventual winners New Zealand in the semi finals.

Serena Guthrie was named as the Champion of Sport at the 2019 Channel Islands Sports Personality of the Year awards. A year later, she was given an MBE for services to the sport.

She bows out from the sport having left an indelible mark on her island, on netball and on its profile on the international stage.