By Chelsea Ravizza
The Burdekin Netball Association has been on a celebratory high since bringing home an amazing win from the Queensland Netball’s Senior State Age Netball Championship.
The championship was held at the Western Districts Netball Association in Brisbane on the weekend of April 6-9, where the U15 girls were awarded first place in Championship Challenge Division 4. Extending over four days, the girls played 15 games competing alongside 16 other teams from around the state including Rockhampton, Bundaberg, Downey Park, Cairns, Mooloolaba, Innisfail, and Tully.
After three days of yielding exceptional results, the girls put on a nail-biting show for spectators as they went up against their biggest competitors, Rockhampton and Downey Park, on the fourth and final day.
Spurred on by their first and only loss, falling short by one point against Cairns on the third day of the competition, the fourth day became more important than ever. The team’s coach, Alix Ballin along with the team’s manager, Christy Pensini, knew going into the fourth day of the tournament the girls would be challenged with the toughest games yet to polish off the championship.
“On that final day, I was sick to my stomach with nerves,” expressed Alix.
“The second game of the day was against Rocky, and the girls were down 5 nil at the start, but they came back playing super strong and we won 13 to 10!”
“The girls knew they had to step up, and they had a good sense of confidence that they could do it, and when it came to game time, they really did, they put it on the court,” explained Christy.
“That game against Rockhampton to get back on top of the ladder was amazing because they all really showed up and it just gave me goosebumps, it was awesome to watch.”
The final game of the day was against Downey Park where the girls either had to come out on top or with a tie score to win the championship due to the high goal average they had accumulated over the tournament.
“Going into that final game, Christy and I knew we either had to win or draw but we didn’t tell the girls because they didn’t need that added pressure and we really had faith in them that they were going to play hard and work hard, which they definitely did,” exclaimed Alix.
The girls walked away from the final day with four wins out of four games, drawing against Downey Park, 9 all, and both Alix and Christy could not have been prouder.
“The girls all worked so well together, the transitions down the court looked really slick, everyone had hands over in defense, everybody pulled their weight, and it was a great team effort,” exclaimed Christy.
Alix and Christy gathered the girls back at the tent and got them settled to share the victorious news which garnered plenty of yelling, crying, screaming, TikToks, photos and an emotional team group hug.
“There were lots of group hugs, screaming and jumping up and down,” explained Christy.
“They were so excited, so ecstatic, all the parents were excited, even the other teams were excited, and Christy and I were just bawling our eyes out, we’re so proud of them,” expressed Alix.
The win was more than well-deserved for the dedicated team as they had been hard at work training since team selections in late October to early November. Once selected, the girls underwent six weeks of Sunday sessions with coaching coordinator and association secretary, Kayla Betteridge, in the lead up to Christmas.
After the Christmas break, Alix coordinated two training sessions per week on Sunday afternoons, and Tuesday mornings before school where the girls focused on footwork techniques, coming forward towards the ball, creating space, drives, center passes, and crafting backline throw-in plays. After 12 weeks of double sessions, Alix and Christy oversaw three weeks of Prep for Rep sessions, and with additional Thursday night netball games thrown into the mix, the girls were putting in the work which certainly showed on game day.
“We made this play called the Zebra, and whenever a play like that went to plan, it was just amazing because you could see the consistency and fluency down the court,” explained Alix.
At a preparation weekend, four weeks out from the championship, the team created a motto; positivity, resilience, and teamwork.
“That was our motto every game, and Christy had shoe locks made so the girls could wear the acronym on the court, and then when we got that win, in our celebrations, we were chanting out our motto the whole time,” exclaimed Alix.
Christy and Alix could not be prouder of their girls, and the community has celebrated this win alongside everyone in the Burdekin Netball Association.
“Every player was a standout, across the defense, the mid court, and the attack, they all gelled together, played well and did what they had to do, and that’s what made us winners,” expressed Alix.
“We kept getting compliments from the other teams on hour well our girls gel together, and I love the word family because I feel like we are a family; we all supported each other on and off the court with how we spoke, the positivity, and the encouragement and I think that’s what made a big difference.
“There were times when the girls had to fight back from being down, and they kept fighting to then win by margins, and I think we definitely have some junior Silverlinks in the making.”
Indi MacDonald, Lola Carmichael, Ryley Sartori, Idoya Aguirre, Jayel Gibson, Jorja Bapty, Pascale Crooks, Sophie Michielin and Isla Chapman
