The "HaMeshagrot" team of Mamanet Harish captured first place in the top bracket of the Or Akiva regional league — their second consecutive championship — capping a season in which the city's mothers' cachibol (netball-style) league cemented its place as one of the most vibrant women's communities in Harish.
Mamanet, built on the slogan "every mother can," has operated in Harish for about seven years and today counts roughly 80 women across five teams: HaMeshagrot, Jump, Powernet, Lohamot Esh — which took third place in the top bracket this season — and Wondernet, founded only months ago. Behind the local operation stands Ravid Hachmon, chair of Mamanet Harish for more than four years, who coaches teams across the region and plays for HaMeshagrot herself, joined recently by co-chair Alina Zisin, the team's captain.
The women describe something well beyond weekly practices. "When I'm on the court I feel 16 again. It's a feeling that's hard to put into words," said Zisin, who discovered the sport by chance through another mother. Daniel Levy, who founded and captains Jump after moving from Hadera five years ago, put it more bluntly: "I hardly knew anyone in Harish, and this team saved me socially. Today these are my friends." Galit Falk, captain of Powernet — a team hoping to enter league play for the first time next season — said her players "wait impatiently for Mondays: it's our place to let go, laugh and simply enjoy."
The teams draw women aged 35 to over 50, religious and secular, from the LGBT community and from every neighborhood — a small mirror of the city itself. "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts," Hachmon said.
Growth, however, has hit an infrastructure ceiling. The teams currently train at the Rona Ramon school sports hall, the only one in the city suitable for cachibol; the hall in the Betzavta neighborhood does not meet league needs. In the 2026-27 season the regional league will move from Or Akiva to Pardes Hanna — a decision Hachmon says came down to hall availability after Harish was also considered. "The moment there's another suitable hall here, we can grow and maybe build a league of our own," she said.
Source: Harish City — חריש סיטי
