SUNRAYSIA 56 d NORTH CENTRAL 47
BEST: SFNL: Alex Leng. NC: Aliza Lockhart.By Mitch Rodd
SUNRAYSIA’S netball stars of the future showed their clubs what they have to look forward to at Sea Lake.
After a slowish start from the green and gold, the 17 and Under side made the most of their opportunities as the game against North Central went on, going on to win by nine goals.
There were some faces in the side who had never represented Sunraysia before, and they will have further opportunities to do so at upcoming Netball Victoria tournaments.
Mildura’s Alex Leng was named best on court, but Sunraysia were not short of contributors. Wentworth’s Ruby McInerny and Ouyen United’s Chloe O’Brien combined well in defence, while shooters Jazmin Parker (Red Cliffs) and Ava Zadow (Mildura) got better as a duo as the game progressed.
Coach Ange McDonald said she was proud of her team’s performance, and believes representative netball is something youngsters should aspire to be part of.
“They gave me a bit of a heart murmur there at the start but it was really good,” McDonald said.
“They gained momentum and you’ve got to think that all these girls come from different clubs and it takes a little bit for them to gel, but they absolutely starred. I’ve got some girls out there who have never represented the league before so it’s nice to see some new faces and some existing ones helping them along.
“It is (a great honour) and I think it needs to be raised as a major importance going forward for kids.
“It’s fantastic. You coach the girls and you can see having the year off is a massive disadvantage and it takes a lot to get back into the swing of things, especially with a different group of girls, so it was great to have interleague back and for them to play as well as they did.”
