A NETBALL player has collapsed and died shortly after umpiring a match.

Diane Willmer, a member of New Ash Green Netball Club, near Gravesend, died last Saturday at the age of 56. She leaves a partner, son and daughter.

Ms Willmer, who lived at New Ash Green, was one of club’s longest-serving members. She collapsed shortly after attending a netball match in Gravesend.

The match is thought to have taken place at Gravesend Grammar School for Girls, in Pelham Road. It is believed Ms Willmer had played for her club earlier in the day and had been umpiring a game at the school in the afternoon not long before she collapsed.

She was taken by ambulance to Dartford's Darent Valley Hospital but never regained consciousness. The exact cause of death is unclear.