IN 1968, Margaret Harmer and Margaret Kelly made history for Meringur Football Netball Club, winning a senior netball premiership.
Little did they know then that it would be another 60 years before the club claimed another senior netball premiership, and that their daughter, granddaughter and great-granddaughters would be a part of that winning side.
Harmer’s daughter Emma Astill, Emma’s cousin Shelly Harmer, Kelly’s granddaughter Sandy I’Anson, and Sandy’s daughters Olivia and Maddy, all took the court in Meringur’s C Grade premiership win on Saturday.
They all agreed that while winning a premiership was pretty special in itself, it was even better to do it alongside family and for family.
“I just kept doing it for Nana every year, wanting to win a grand final again for her,” Sandy said.
Emma, whose daughter Claudia also plays at the club, described Meringur as “like an extension of your family”.
She played a big role in getting the club back up an running after it went into recess in 2012.
“The family connections there kind of keep it going, I think that’s the biggest thing,” she said.
“My grandad put some money into buying jumpers after the Second World War and getting the club going again, so there is lots of history there.
“But it’s the friendships as well. We’ve got a really good group of girls there at the moment that keep coming back and wanting to play with each other.”
While history has repeated itself in a way, Emma was feeling positive about the future of the club, and hoped they would all return to the court to try to win back-to-back premierships next season.
“Sandy did say we might retire if we won, but about 30 seconds after winning she said let’s go back to back,” she said.
