Club culture lifts netballers

NETBALL finals are yet to start, but Raquel Ban says South Mildura can already appreciate success after improving on last year.

South Mildura has had a tough warm-up for finals after playing Wentworth, Mildura and Ouyen United in recent weeks.

The Bulldogs did not enjoy a win during that stretch, but their loss to third-placed Ouyen United was by the narrowest of margins – one point.

After last week’s confidence-boosting five-point win over Merbein, Ban said she was happy with the overall regular season result.

“It’s nice to be in the top four after we were fifth last year,” Ban said.

The wing attack said she had enjoyed the regularity of the first full season in three years because it had played an important social role connecting the netball and football community.

“I’ve really enjoyed coming back to netball,” she said. “It’s been really nice from a social point of view.

“For the girls to get around the boys and the boys getting around the netballers – it’s been really nice to get that culture back.”

Ban, whose partner Tyler Curtis plays in South Mildura’s senior football side, said the common bonds between the senior netball and football sides had led to cross-sport support during the year.

“A couple of the other girls on the team have husbands who play footy as well,” Ban said. “So, they’ve really brought over the boys from a footy point of view. And vice versa.

“Tyler and the boys always give us some good feedback.

“You see it from a different point of view when you’re watching as a spectator.”

Ban said they had received feedback on different ways to get move the ball into attack by using different attacking combinations, but also advice on being patient with the ball.

“It’s been really helpful for us.”

Ban said she was trying to channel the energy from the regular season into the finals as South Mildura prepared for their first semi-final with Ouyen United.

“(I’m) just keeping positive with our team because obviously the teams ahead are quite strong,” she said.

“But I think being positive and playing our game will help us. We’ll play on the weekend and see how we go.

“It’s nice to just have finals this year and to be able to play under some sort of normal conditions.

“I think Wentworth is probably in for the flag, but anything can happen in finals.”

As this week’s Netballer of the Round, Ban receives $100 courtesy of Mildura Golf Resort and Sunraysia Daily.