Ouyen United looks to juniors

COACH: Kyra Nathan.

ARRIVALS: Bree Barker, Fiona Sanford, Kathy Carusella, Nikola Loxton, Cindy Hannig.

DEPARTURES: Tayla Willsmore (injury), Casey Crothers, Eliza Parsons, Holly Mazza.

SEASON 2023 brings much intrigue regarding Ouyen United on the netball court.

One of the powerhouses of the SFNL A Grade netball scene for a number of years, the Kangas find themselves in an interesting position leading into the new campaign.

The loss of co-coach Casey Crothers and the injured Tayla Willsmore leaves some significant holes in the line-up, but 2022 Millewa A Grade best and fairest Kathy Carusella looks an astute signing.

Coach Kyra Nathan admitted the team felt lucky to have made last year’s grand final, when they went down to Wentworth by a solitary goal in one of the greatest games in recent history.

There is still plenty of talent in the line-up with the likes of Catherine Brown, Tsharni Burns and Ellen Morrish, while a number of up-and-coming juniors will likely get opportunities at senior level.

“I would imagine we’d try to blood a few more young players into our combined A and B Grade squad,” she said.

“Girls going to boarding school is an issue in a community like ours that we run into, when girls hit 14 or 15 years old they start thinking about heading away to school.

“We don’t have as many Under 17s like we do Under 11s and 13s, we certainly struggle with numbers a bit being more isolated.

“It makes it a fantastic family-friendly club but you see clubs in town have the luxury of being able to turn players away, while we need as many people on board as we can get.”

Ouyen United begin their campaign against Merbein on April 22 following a fixture change, meaning their grand final rematch is now two weeks later.