New look Red Cliffs, Imperials face off

RED Cliffs and Imperials are both eager to test their new sides on the court this weekend in what is likely to be a competitive Round 1 match at Quandong Park.

The two teams, both returning under new coaches this season, will have a mix of new and old faces when they hit the court on Saturday.

Imperials coach Kym Mayne, who is back coaching the side after a year off, said she believed the team would be competitive against the Tigers, and was looking forward to seeing how everyone worked together against a different club.

“We are a fairly new team to any previous season, there are only two players from the existing past season, Meg McManus and Kia Scott,” she said.

“Our other seven or eight girls are new to Imps, some returning some new to the district, but we are looking forward to getting on the court and putting some things into place.”

Mayne said Round 1 was a great opportunity to see what the team needed to work on.

Red Cliffs coach Chantal Allford, who came in to replace outgoing coach Steph O’Loughlin, said her side would also be testing positions and seeing how the team worked on the court.

She said the Tigers were expecting a tough match against well-performing Imperials.

“We expect them to come out hard the way they did last season,” she said.

“A win would be great, but Imps are a fairly strong team and we are going to have to work hard to make sure we are at least really competitive.”

Allford said Red Cliffs would have a lot of great players on the court Saturday, with only one player unable to make it due to injury.

“Jazmin (Parker) and Rubie (Cope) are shooting together, they have become a really good combination,” she said.

“Yelena (Richardson) down in defence, she is a senior player, she comes with a wealth of knowledge and she is going to help out some of our young girls.

“We also have Jacqulyn (Bell) in the centre, who sort of binds us all together.”

Cope is a new addition to the side, returning to the Tigers after a few years at South Mildura.

Allford said she was nervous about her first round as coach and hoped she could continue the great work O’Loughlin had started for the club.

“Hopefully we can continue where she left off,” she said.

“We are just trying to find our feet and keep the momentum.”

Mayne said she expected Imps’ existing players McManus and Scott to shine on the court, as well as returning player Maddison Mayne.

“We also have some really strong juniors in Laci McHugh and Prue Maloney, so we are looking to see how they are going,” she said.

“But we have also recruited Tracey Sherlock for the mid-court. She is extremely fit and has exceptional ball skills. I’m looking forward to putting it all together.”

Meanwhile, at Underbool Oval, Merbein will also have the opportunity to put their players to the test when they front up against Ouyen United.

The Kangas, who narrowly lost the grand final to undefeated Wentworth, are back this season with some new recruits.

Merbein, who finished seventh last year, will be eager to prove they are back stronger than ever for round one.

At John James Oval, last year’s top-of-the-ladder team, Wentworth, will play the season’s bottom-of-the-ladder team, Robinvale Euston.

The Eagles will likely be eager to benchmark their new side against the premiership team, who haven’t lost a game since the 2019 grand final.

At the Mildura Sporting Precinct, South Mildura will take on Irymple.

The fourth and sixth-placed team from last season will be able to get a better taste of how they may perform this year testing their skills against each other.

They will both be eager to start the year off with a win.

A Grade netball starts at 12pm, followed by B Grade at 1.30pm and C Reserves at 2.30pm. C Grade play at 11am.