THE Western Border Netball Association has returned from the 2021 SA Country Championships with three of the four titles, successfully defending the A Grade, 17 and Under and 15 and Under titles it secured in 2019.
It was a new look A Grade line-up lacking the usual experience associated with the Western Border campaigns, but there was one constant – coach Donna Denton – and she was able to galvanise the team to work through some tough challenges over the two days of senior competition and secure the nail-biting one-goal victory.
West Gambier’s Lisa McGregor shot the winning goal in the title decider against the Kowree Naracoorte Tatiara Netball Association with around 10 seconds to spare and Western Border was able to hold on.
The team had one loss for the championships – against its 2019 title rival Port Lincoln – with those two sides playing an historic curtain raiser to the Adelaide Thunderbirds Saturday night clash with the Sydney Swifts.
Injury threatened to undermine the campaign when East Gambier team mates Lisa Fyfe and Tyne Bosko collided on day one, rendering Bosko unable to play on for the weekend, but the team continued to dig deep.
Testament to the strength of the Western Border line-up, three of their players were named in the Team of the Championships – Tenille Gray, Emily Hunter and Fyfe.
Paige Nitschke and McGregor shared shooting duties under the post, with Gray out the front in the grand final and both showed great composure with ball in hand and finished accurately.
Tarsh McCallum’s speed and ability to work in small spaces was critical in the tense opening half as she continued to provide an outlet for the goalers until they could find a good shooting position.
Hunter was as dynamic as ever through the centre, while Hannah Nitschke did a shut-down job on her opponent and was pivotal in transition.
Fyfe managed to secure turnover ball every time Western Border needed it, while Jade Ritter was another of the young, quiet achievers, who got some critical last-half touches and rebounds that ensured Western Border was always in the hunt.
The 17 and Under team secured a six-goal victory, also over the KNTNA, capping off a stunning, undefeated tournament.
The KNT got the better of the first half, but the young Western Border side, coached by senior grand finalist McGregor, refused to let the game slip.
Caeleigh Humphries and Portia McRae stepped up the defensive effort in the second half and won back plenty of ball, helped by the tight defensive efforts of Tara Bryant and Ellie Bouchier through the mid-court.
Bryant was also pivotal in attack as she combined well with wing attack Lucy Denton to deliver some precise ball into Amryn Bosko and Sarah Ritter, with both finishing accurately.
The 15 and Under championship winning team, coached by Karen Gould, entered the title decider against long-time rival Riverland, on the back of only one loss for the weekend.
Lille Paul was outstanding in the title decide at wing attack, not just with her attacking play but her ability to win the ball back defensively.
The Western Border side had a sloppy opening half and the Riverland appeared in control as uncharacteristic errors crept into the team’s play.
But the girls knuckled down in the second half, with Macey Griffith feeding Annelise Janssen with precision and defenders Stella Mobbs and Lauren Van Eeden finding themselves in better position to create turnover ball.
Ella Easterby also added some bite to the defensive effort with her pace and willingness to contest on the defensive wing.
In the end, it was another nail-biter, with a one-goal win as the Riverland ran out of time to transition a late turnover into their shooting circle.
The 13 and Under team, coached by Rosie Collins, played off for the Division 2 title and finished runner-up, recovering from a tough opening day to put together a string of impressive results.
Western Border also sent two development teams with the Ellie Gould coached 15 and Under team making the semi-finals of Division 3 and the 13 and Under team surprising everyone by securing a spot in Division 1 based on their day one results and finishing in the top 10 teams for the championships.
