Game Reports - By Chris Bye
STNA Round 10
Round 10 of the Southern Tasmanian Netball League commenced on Wednesday night, with two Kingston teams in action. After an even first quarter the Kingston Premier League team coached by Simon Ruddock pulled away over the last 3 quarters to record a percentage boosting 50-24 win over OHA, who had been in good form in rounds 8 and 9. Player of the match was awarded to Brooke Jones who has played the last two games at WA, replacing Olivia McGow who is out long term due to a broken collarbone.
The Kingston Blue 21b team coached by State League Open Apprentice Coach Mia Rowland, also recorded a 50-24 win over Cripps Black to hold 5th position and with the best % of any team in the competition they are potentially only 1 more win away from securing a place in the top 4 and could jump to 2nd position if they can continue their winning streak in round 11.
Thursday night featured Kingston’s 17b and 17a teams; the 17b team being the clubs best performed team in the STNA competition after 9 games, along with the 15c Kingston Green team coached by Karen Driessen and Assistant Coach Melody Driessen.
The 17b competition is the most even of all the STNA divisions; with all 6 teams in the roster right in contention for a place in the finals at the half way stage of the season. Kingston White coached by John Fox and Assisted by Tania Mayne demolished South East Suns 43-16 to move 4 games clear of the next 4 teams, Kilburn Blue, AYC, Cripps Waratah and South East Suns who slipped to 5th position on the ladder; 8% behind 4th placed Cripps Waratah.
The 7.40pm game that followed on court 8 was the block buster clash between the two top teams in that competition, which are both a class ahead of the other 4 teams in the 17a competition. This game was Umpired by Emily Wapstra from Kilburn and Suzette Weeding from Palena and featured two very high profile coaches in Aaron Pidgeon from Cripps Waratah Blue and Shane Fish for the Kingston Blue team, plus 6 players from Cripps Waratah as well Kingston’s Jo Thompson and the Brereton sisters Keely and Hannah who were involved in stage 2 of the recent State 15U trials held in Launceston.
The starting line-ups for both teams were as follows:
Cripps Waratah Blue Kingston Blue
GS Sophie Pidgeon GK Hannah Brereton
GA Ashlea Turner GD Brielle Gordon
WA Olivia Read WD Keely Brereton
C Jessica Scott C Jo Thompson
WD Lilly Nuss WA Matilda Payne
GD Alexia Smith GA Maddi Cordwell
GK Amelia McMahon GS Lucy Appleby
Sub Nicola Probert Subs Leah Polley and Abbey Conley
Kingston Blues started well with Lucy Appleby in top form at GS and she scored 8 from 10 in the first quarter; but Cripps fought back in the last half of the quarter to level the scores at 9-9 at the first change.
Kingston Coach Shane Fish moved Jo Thompson to WA and Captain Matilda Payne into the Centre position to start the 2nd quarter. Cripps Waratah Blue showed in the 2nd quarter as to why they are the Premiership favourites in this division; led by defenders Lilly Nuss, Alexia Smith and Amelia McMahon who restricted the Kingston Blue team to only 2 goals for the quarter as they extended their lead at the half-time break to 17-11.
Kingston Blue Coach Shane Fish brought on Leah Polley to GA and Abbey Conley to C and switched defenders Hannah Brereton and Brielle Gordon, with Gordon moving back to GK and Brereton out to GD to match up on Ashlea Turner, who was the match winner in the first contest between these two teams. Kingston Blues showed that they are a genuine Premiership contender in this quarter, scoring 10 goals while holding Cripps to only 7 goals to reduce the margin back to 3 goals at the last change, with the scores 24-21. Kingston goalies Lucy Appleby and Leah Polley were in good form and they were fed with plenty of scoring opportunities by Jo Thompson at WA and Abbey Conley who was an effective player for the team in this quarter.
The last quarter was a fitting finale to a great game. Kingston stayed in the contest and challenged the Premiership favourites in a high pressure last quarter in which both defensive ends were exceptionally good. Cripps held on to win by 4 goals 31-27, with Ashlea Turner scoring 4 goals from 4 attempts and she proved once again to be the match winner with her ability to convert a high % of shots taken. Kingston had plenty of good players in this game led by defenders Brielle Gordon and the Brereton sisters Keely and Hannah who were outstanding in each of the 4 quarters restricting the high scoring Cripps team to only 31 goals over the 4 quarters; Abbey Conley was a good player in the Centre in the 2nd half; Jo Thompson played well In the Centre and WA as she always does; Leah Polley played well at GA in the 2nd half and had a great contest with Alexia Smith in a battle between two of the tallest players in this competition and both very good athletes; while Lucy Appleby was effective in the 1st and 3rd quarters and looked a potential match winner for the Kingston Blue team; but full credit to Cripps who had all the answers in what was a great game of netball between two very good teams.
STNA Round 5 - 15 Kingson Aqua V Cripps Blue
Glendon Kingston Aqua 4th played Cripps Waratah Blue 7th on court 3 in round 5 of the 15b competition. Kingston Aqua are the clubs 3rd selected 15U team which played last year in the 15b competition and were very competitive. The team was coached by Tasmanian Magpies player Emma Johns and Kingston State League Open player Madeline Jones, who was having a year off playing and teamed up with Emma Johns to give the club two very good young coaches in charge of the team which were playing up a grade in the 15b competition. The team finished the season strongly, winning their last 3 games and they have earned the right to play again this year in the 15b competition.
This season Maddie Jones is back playing in the State League Open team; so doesn’t have the time to coach again this season and her place has been taken by 17a and Stingas 17U player Maddi Cordwell who was Assistant Coach to Lisa Wheeldon in last year’s 13a team and this year moves up to the Assistant Coach role for the 15b team.
The starting line-ups for both teams were as follows:
Kingston Aqua Cripps Waratah Blue
GS Grace Main GS Edie Jordan
GA Tahlia Sculthorpe GA Pippa Atherton
WA Birgitta Albans WA Chloe Walker
C Sophie Dance C Georgia Rooke
WD Jessica Denton WD Jessica Bremner
GD Jessica Sypkes GD Abby Guinan
GK Niamh Morley GK Macey Fooks
Sub Avah Polley Subs Kiara Hogan, Lily Nielsen & Bella Read
Umpires for the game were Brooke Sheppard from Kilburn and Madi Lamb from Karana.
Kingston Aqua started well and led 6-3 at the first quarter interval.
Coach Emma Johns brought on Ava Polley to Goal Defence to start the 2nd quarter, replacing Jess Sypkes who formed a solid defensive end with Niamh Morley and hard working WD player Jess Denton in the first quarter. Tall Goal Shooter Grace Main scored 6 goals from 7 attempts in the 2nd quarter as the Kingston Aqua team increased the margin to lead 12-7 at half-time.
Coach Johns rested tall shooter Grace Main and moved Birgitta Albans from WA to Goal Shooter to start the third quarter. Avah Polley was moved into the Centre position; Sophie Dance to WA and Jess Sypkes came back on at GD. Kingston Aqua were impressive in the 3rd quarter and scored 8 goals while holding Cripps Blue to only 2 goals to give the team a match winning 20-9 lead at the last change. Birgitta Albans impressed in the GS position with her height and agility and she scored 7 goals from 9 attempts in the 3rd quarter.
With the game over, Sophie Dance was rested for the last quarter and Grace Main came back on to GS. Birgitta Albans moved out to Goal Attack and Tahlia Sculthorpe to WA. The last quarter was all Kingston, with tall GS Grace Main dominating the game in the goal circle and she scored 11 goals from 13 attempts (21 goals from 26 attempts from her 3 quarters on court) being well fed with scoring opportunities by Birgitta Albans, Tahlia Sculthorpe and Ava Polley. At the other end of the court Kingston excelled also, led by Niahm Morley who is an outstanding player who will benefit from having a season under the influence of Coach Emma Johns. Jess Sypkes played very well at Goal Defence as did Jess Denton at WD. Jess Denton is the only remaining player in the 15b Aqua team from last year and she is highly rated by photographer James McCluskey for her strong work ethic playing in the crucial WD position. Ava Polley impressed in the Centre position in the last half and she will most likely share that crucial position this season with Sophie Dance. The final score was 31-10.
Kingston Aqua held their 4th position on the ladder with this win and it demonstrates the depth of talent that the club has in the 15U age group, for the clubs 3rd selected team to be doing so well in the 15b competition. Emma Johns is an astute Coach, who plays the game at the top level and she has some talented players to work with including Niahm Morley and Grace Main who were key players from the 13c Premiership team last season that was coached by Ellen Summers and Mia Rowland; as is Tahlia Sculthorpe who is a highly skilled GA player from last season’s 13b Premiership team that were coached by Tania and Isabelle Mayne.
The clubs depth of talent in the 15U age group was seen in the following game on court 9 when the top team in the 15c competition, Kingston Green who are coached by Karen and Melody Driessen; after an even first quarter, turned on a netball clinic in the last 3 quarters to defeat 3rd placed team Kilburn Blue 40-19.
STNA Round 1 - 17 Kingston White V Cripps
The Kingston 17c team won the Premiership last season and as a result Kingston have two teams in this season’s 17ab competition; in which once again the A and B grade teams all play together during the roster season and then separate into their Divisions for the finals.
Kingston White have inherited two Premiership Coaches from last season in John Fox and Tania Mayne. The team has plenty of Premiership players from last season, including Anne Stewart from the 17c Premiership team, plus Lucy Clifford, Marli Irwin and Tess Allanby all from the 15b Premiership team coached by John Fox, who is unquestionably one of the most experienced coaches in the STNA competition. Isabelle Mayne played in the Kingston 17a team in 2018 as a defender and this season she gives the team some added strength at the attacking end and is a versatile player who can also play at the defensive end if injuries or illness require her at that end of the court. Chloe Eggleston is a sharp shooter who adds some height at the attacking end; while Caitlyn Adler gives the team some height at the defensive end. Ava Broomfield has been recruited from Kilburn and will play in the mid-court for Kingston White.
The line ups to start the Round 1 game between the two most powerful clubs in the STNA was as follows:
Cripps Waratah Kingston White
GS Lauralia Green GS Isabelle Mayne
GA Lari Warnes GA Chloe Eggleston
WA Taya Webb WA Ava Broomfield
C Georgia Webster C Anne Stewart
WD Olivia Graham WD Lucy Clifford
GD Chelsea Boxall GD Marli Irwin
GK Tynesha MacGregor GK Caitlin Adler
Subs Anna North & Shakira Bone Sub Tess Allanby
Kingston White were impressive in the first quarter and they looked sharp and hungry to play after the long break. Isabelle Mayne and Chloe Eggleston were an intimidating combination in goals for the Kingston White team and they combined well at the attacking end, with Eggleston scoring 9 goals from 9 attempts at 100% in the first quarter. Kilburn recruit Ava Broomfield did well at WA in her first quarter for her new club and she will enjoy the opportunity of playing under coaches Fox and Mayne.
Athletic Centre court player Anne Stewart was impressive in the final’s series last season and the highly skilled quick Centre court player looked sharp and showed that she will be a key player this season playing up one division from last year. Kingston White’s defence was led by Marli Irwin who was sensational in all three final’s games in the 15b 2018 Premiership team; with team-mate from 2018 Lucy Clifford playing well at Wing Defence, along with tall defender Caitlyn Adler at Goal Keeper. Caitlyn played last season in the 15b competition under coaches Emma Johns and Madeline Jones, and she benefitted from playing a season under Tasmanian Magpies defender Emma Johns and will also enjoy the opportunity this season of playing under two experienced Coaches and alongside Marli Irwin who is one of the best defenders in the 17ab competition. Irwin and Clifford teamed well together in 2018 and they took up where they left off in the 2018 Grand Final when both players excelled on the big stage. Kingston White led 12-8 at the quarter-time break.
Tess Allanby entered the game at WA in the 2nd quarter, Ava Broomfield was moved to Centre with Anne Stewart rested after an impressive performance in the crucial Centre position. The 2nd quarter was almost a repeat of the first quarter, with Kingston winning the quarter 11 goals to 8. Chloe Eggleston again converted 9 goals from 9 attempts in the 2nd quarter and the 15d player from 2018; showed that she is player to watch in the future and she will enjoy the opportunity of playing at the higher level this season under very experienced Coaches. Isabelle Mayne was in the highlight reel in the 2nd quarter when she deliberately passed the ball from behind the goal line at the attacking end into the goal post, while stepping back into court to take possession; and as a result scored an impressive goal as she did in last year’s Grand Final, when Isabelle surprised the opposition and the crowd when she demonstrated her ability to think outside the square playing at the attacking end of the court.
Kingston White led 23-16 at the half-time interval.
Coach Fox rang the changes for the start of the quarter no. 3, with Anne Stewart coming back on into the Centre, Tess Allanby was moved forward to GA, Chloe Eggleston moved out to WA for the 3rd quarter after a sensational first half shooting performance scoring at 100% efficiency, Caitlin Adler moved out to GD and swapped with Marli Irwin who was moved back to GK. Ava Broomfield was rested after two good quarters in the mid-court. Kingston’s defenders Marli Irwin, Caitlin Adler and Lucy Clifford were all outstanding in the vital 3rd quarter, assisted by Anne Stewart who excelled in the 3rd quarter defensively, as she did also in the first quarter at both ends of the court.
Kingston won the 3rd quarter and led 31-19 at the last change.
Coach John Fox brought back Ava Broomfield to Wing Defence, Lucy Clifford moved forward to Wing Attack, Chloe Eggleston went into the Goal Shooter position, with Isabelle Mayne rested. The last quarter was a shootout which Kingston White won 15 goals to 12 to win 46-31, which has put the team on top of the ladder in the 17b competition and with the Kingston State League 19U Assistant Coach in charge, Kingston White look a genuine Premiership contender after Round 1, with plenty of experienced, skillful and versatile players in their line-up and top quality Coaches to bring the best out of the players. Marli Irwin and Anne Stewart both excelled in this game and would have been hard to keep out of the umpires 3, 2 or 1 votes. Chloe Eggleston was Player of the Match; the 2018 15d goalie scoring 8 goals from 9 attempts in the last quarter to end with 26 goals from 27 shots in 3 quarters in the GA/GS position. The tall goalie has a very sound shooting technique which holds up under pressure and she looks to be a player with a big future in the game. Tess Allanby scored 7 goals from 8 attempts in the last quarter. The 2018 15b Premiership Wing Attack player has her own unique shooting action and showed in the last quarter that she can be a hot shooter when in form and Tess will enjoy some opportunities this season rotating through the GA position.
Kingston White Coach John Fox flexed his coaching muscles in this game, before leaving for a family holiday in Japan. Assistant Coach Tania Mayne will take charge in Round 2.
Captain Lucy Clifford left the court in the last minute of play after a heavy fall. Lucy is a tough country girl who is great leader and has plenty of courage, so I’m tipping that she will take to the court in Round 2 even if she a broken arm, a fractured elbow and a dislocated wrist.
2018 Reports
RACTi League - Semi Final - 19u - Kingston v Karana
Kingston Blues in front of a big home crowd came from behind at half-time to defeat a strong Karana team for the 2nd week in succession to advance to next Saturday’s Preliminary final against the Cavaliers at the Silverdome in Launceston.
Umpires for the first semi-final were Hannah Donoghue and Isabella Pace, with Rachael Goetzke the Emergency Umpire.
With Lisa Wheeldon back from the National 15U Championships in Melbourne, Kingston Blues had both Head Coaches back for this elimination first semi-final. Karana were coached by Anna Di Carlo with Margot Huxley Assistant Coach.
The starting line-ups for both teams were as follows:
GS Jess Earney Kingston v GK Mackenzie Queen Karana
GA Lucy Street v GD Olivia Ferguson
WA Georgia Jones v WD Ally Pyke
C Isabelle Burden v C Felicia Di Carlo
WD Brigitte Clack v WA Grace Ferguson
GD Abby Burnett v GA Ella Richmond
GK Hannah Steinhauser v GS Lucy Clapham
Subs for Kingston Blues were Ella Visser, Lucy Newton and Eloise Fox
Subs for Karana were Charlie Wheller, Katie Andrewartha and Megan Steele
The first quarter was as expected high pressure, with good defensive pressure applied all over the court by both teams. Kingston started well and led 10-6 at the first change, but didn’t put the Karana team under enough scoreboard pressure. Hannah Steinhauser, Abby Burnett and Brigitte Clack were outstanding at the defensive end as was Centre Isabelle Burden playing against her old team, matched up on another talented player in Felicia Di Carlo.
Karana Coach Anna Di Carlo brought on Charlie Wheeler to WA to start the 2nd quarter and she was matched up with Kingston’s hard working and highly skilled defender Brigitte Clack. Karana were outstanding in the 2nd quarter turning a 4 goal first quarter deficit into a 3 goal lead at the half-time break. Lucy Clapham score 6 goals from 7 attempts and Ella Richmond was in top shooting form converting all 8 of her shots in this quarter in what was a great team performance with all 7 players rising to the occasion when the pressure was on and their season was on the line.
Kingston Coaches Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon brought on Ella Visser to WD to start the vital 3rd quarter. Brigitte Clack was moved back to GD and Abby Burnett was rested. The young Kingston Blues team turned on their best form in this quarter with Lucy Street leading from the front at GA, scoring 11 goals from 12 attempts. Kingston scored 16 goals for the quarter, turning a 3 goal deficit into a 3 goal lead at the last change; but Karana did just enough to stay in the contest, with the three quarter-time score 33-30. Karana Coach Anna Di Carlo brought on State 15U player to WA during this quarter and the young players pace and skill were going to be crucial in the last quarter re providing scoring opportunities to goalies Lucy Clapham and Ella Richmond who were in top form. The Blues key offensive players Isabelle Burden and Georgia Jones were in top flight in this quarter, with the season on the line.
Kingston Blues kept the same line-up for the last quarter, which turned out to be a shootout. Ella Richmond was in very sharp shooting form and she converted 7 goals from 8 attempts, with Lucy Clapham scoring 6 goals in the last quarter, but Kingston Blues gun offensive players Isabelle Burden and Georgia Jones were magnificent when the team desperately needed them and they feed the ball beautifully into goalies Jess Earney and Lucy Street. Jess Earney played a very strong game in the goal circle and continued her outstanding season in her first year in the TNL. Jess did struggle to convert her good work in the first three quarters; but the 15 year old player (now turned 16) showed great composure under pressure in the last quarter, scoring 11 goals from 12 attempts to secure the game for her team.
For Karana Ella Richmond continued to impress and her last 3 quarters were outstanding. Richmond scored 24 goals from 26 attempts to be cleanest shooter on the night on the big stage.
Lucy Street left the court with just under 2 minutes remaining and she was replaced by the Blues other 15 year old goalie Lucy Newton who looked hungry to impress in the dying moments of the game as the home team hung on to win 49-43 and set up a Preliminary final block buster with Launceston team Cavaliers; in what should be a thrilling encounter between two teams desperate to make another grand final appearance.
STNA - Round 14 - 13a - Kingston V Cripps
The match of Round 14 in the 13a competition was between the top two teams Kingston Blue and Cripps Waratah Blue. Kingston Blue won the round 4 contest between these two teams 32-21 and Cripps Waratah Blue bounced back to win the 2nd game in round 9 comfortably with a 32-16 result ; both games played on Wednesday night at 5pm on the show court no 5, as curtain raisers to the Premier League game. This round 14 game between these two teams was also played on court number 5 on Wednesday afternoon at 5pm.
Two quality umpires in Ray Donoghue and Holly Mollineaux were appointed to this game.
Both teams have top quality coaches, with Kingston Blue coached by State 15U Coach Lisa Wheeldon, who is also Co Coach of the Kingston Blues State League 19U team and was Assistant Coach of the Blues 2016 and 2017 19U Premiership teams. Assistant Coach is Maddi Cordwell who plays in the Kingston 15a team.
Cripps Waratah Blue are coached by Fiona Geappen who was one of Tasmania’s best players in her era, having played in the Melbourne Phoenix 2002 ANL Premiership team and from 2003 played for Cripps for almost a decade in the State League, playing in four Premiership teams in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2008. Fiona also Coached the Cripps State League Open team to three successive Grand Final appearances in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
The match ups to start the game were as follows:
Kingston Blue GS Daniela Cross v Cripps Wararah Blue GK Bella Zielinski
GA Maddison Tabor v GD MacKenzie Banks
WA Abbie Jones v WD Kaitlyn Turner
C Ivy O’Neill v C Kendall Byers
WD Sophie Cassidy v WA Abbey Geappen
GD Abbey Glover v GA Jack Jordon
GK Kaelah Gordon v GS Maya Armstrong
Sub for Kingston was Payge Riley.Subs for Cripps Waratah Blue were Cate Clingeleffer and MacKenzie Williams.
Kingston Blue won the first quarter and led 11-9, with Daniela Cross converting 2 shots from 2 attempts and feeding the ball well to Maddison Tabor who was in top form scoring 9 goals from 11 attempts. Kingston Blue’s classy mid-court players Ivy O’Neill and Abbie Jones were instrumental in setting up plenty of scoring opportunities for the goalies.
Kingston Coach Lisa Wheeldon brought on Payge Riley to GK to start the 2nd quarter and rested Kaelah Gordon. The 2nd quarter was evenly matched with both teams scoring 5 goals for the quarter. Kingston defenders Payge Riley, Abbey Glover and Sophie Cassidy were effective in this quarter and helped keep their team in front; as Kingston led 16-14 at the half time interval.
Lisa Wheeldon moved Abbie Jones into the Centre, switching positions with Ivy O’Neill who moved forward to WA. Kaelah Gordon came back on to WD and Sophie Cassidy was rested. The third quarter was goal for goal between these two talented teams, with both teams scoring 8 goals for the quarter for Kingston to hold their two goal margin, going into the last break with the score 24-22.
Cripps Coach Fiona Geappen brought Jack Jordon to GS for the last quarter, with Kingston’s Payge Riley having the big task of limiting the effect of Cripps Blue’s star goalie who was the match winner in the round 9 game between these two teams. Cate Clingeleffer was at GA, giving the Cripps Blue team two short but quick and neat shooting goalies; with Clingeleffer matched up by Kingston’s taller defender Kaelah Gordon who was brought back by Coach Lisa Wheeldon to GD for the deciding quarter of action. Sophie Cassidy came back on into the Centre position to give the team an injection of leg speed, Abbie Jones moved back to WA and she was matched up on Cripps Blue WD MacKenzie Williams. Abbey Glover moved out to WD matching up on Cripps Maya Armstrong who finished the game at WA.
The last quarter was a high scoring shootout between Cripps pocket sized goalies Jack Jordon and Cate Clingeleffer at one end and Kingston’s taller goalies Daniela Cross and Maddison Tabor. Spectators from both teams were on the edge of their seats, and the players didn’t disappoint playing in front of the Premier League players who were watching the final quarter of netball by two very talented young teams. The scores were level inside the last two minutes when Kingston GA Maddison Tabor made a great intercept which was crucial in helping Kingston take a 1 goal lead and they hung on to win 34-33 in what was a great game of netball. Kingston goalies Daniela Cross and Maddison Tabor both scored 5 goals from 6 attempts in the last quarter and their ability to convert under pressure helped the team hold on to win a thriller.
Full credit to Cripps as they are a powerful club, with two teams in the 13a competition who are currently 2nd and 3rd. This young Cripps Waratah Blue team has 8 players who are in their first year in the 13a competition, with one of Tasmania’s best coaches Fiona Geappen helping these young players develop their skills and it is no wonder that this team is a Premiership contender.
Captain Abbie Jones is Kingston’s only player from last year’s team which lost the Grand Final to Cripps who were coached by Aaron Pidgeon.
Below is a brief comment on the players in the Kingston Blue team:
Daniela Cross – the Stingas 13U goalie played 4 quarters at GS and scored 13 goals from 15 attempts, combining well with Maddison Tabor to give the team plenty of scoring power at the offensive end. Daniela’s sharp shooting was a key factor in the team getting up for in win in a very close game.
Maddison Tabor – played 4 quarters at GA and finished with 21 goals from 27 attempts. Maddison is a good athlete and worked hard to find space and was one of the best players on the court in this game and may have been the match winner for the Kingston Blue team coming up with a crucial intercept late in the game, to add to her effectiveness offensively.
Abbie Jones – played three quarters at WA and one in the Centre. Abbie’s ability to use the ball well and find a target with almost all her possessions was a key factor in Kingston winning this game, between two highly skilled teams who put on an exhibition. Both teams at times turned the ball over going for too much with some long passes; but Abbie was rock solid and was a match winner in this game with her skill level and ability to execute her passes safely to a team-mate.
Ivy O’Neill – talented Centre court player who was recruited from Huon Valley this season along with sister Phoebe, who is also a very talented player, playing in the 15b Aqua team coached by Emma Johns and Madeline Jones. Ivy played the first two quarters in the Centre and the 3rd quarter and WA and she is skillful player who along with Abbie Jones and Sophie Cassidy, gives the Kingston Blue team the best mid-court in the competition.
Sophie Cassidy – an aggressive player who attacks the ball and is unquestionably the best WD player in the competition. Sophie played the first two quarters at WD and the last quarter in the Centre, giving the team plenty of leg speed. Sophie’s three successive intercepts in the vital third quarter in the first round game against Cripps Waratah Black, must be close to a record as not too make State League WD players can boast about ever having done that.
Abbey Glover – had the big task in the first half matching up on Cripps potential match winner in Jack Jordon. Abbey played an outstanding game and was one of the best players on the court in this game. Abbey and Sophie Cassidy proved to be match winners in the 3rd quarter of the round 1 game against Cripps Waratah Black, when the team came back from 8 goals down at half-time to win by 5 goals in what was a huge turnaround on the outside court no. 2. Abbey was a member of the successful Kingston 13U team that made the Grand Final at the recent Launceston tournament and her high leaping captured the attention of the Examiner photographer, making the back page of the Examiner Newspaper on the following Monday, with team-mate Kaelah Gordon.
Kaelah Gordon – played the first quarter at GK, was rested in the 2nd, played the 3rd at WD and the last quarter at GD; the versatile defender being used by Coach Lisa Wheeldon in all three defensive positions. Possibly plays her best netball at GK, where she was a match winner in the last quarter in the Round 1 game against Cripps Waratah Black.
Payge Riley – played the last 3 quarters at GK and had the big task of matching up on the quick footed Jack Jordon in the last quarter. Payge doesn’t mind a challenge and she worked hard at the defensive end all game. Payge loves to put plenty of pepper on her passes and her team-mates need to be on the ball when she gets hold of it, as the ball comes often comes out of defense at bullet like speed.
Charlotte Doyle – did not play in this game; but Charlotte is the 3rd goalie in the team and along with Daniela Cross, gives the Kingston Blue team plenty of height at the attacking end. Charlotte is a very clean shooter of the ball, when her confidence is up.
RACTi League - Round 10 - 19u - Kingston V Hawks
In the 2nd game of the Round 10 double header at the Silverdome in Launceston, Kingston Blues played the Northern Hawks, in what was virtually a semi-final for the team, as almost every game is at the moment in this very even and tight competition. OHA winning their first game of the season on Friday night helped Kingston; as there are 5 teams fighting it out for third and fourth position on the ladder, with only OHA & Burnie out of contention. The competition is so even this year that both OHA & Burnie are good enough to upset teams above them and although they are unlikely to make the finals; they have the potential to shape the finals and OHA have done so in this round by knocking off 3rd placed Arrows and now only a game and half separates third placed Arrows and 7th placed Kingston; with Cripps and Cavaliers almost certain to make the finals and end up 1st and 2nd on the ladder.
Umpires for the crucial game between the Northern Hawks and Kingston were the experienced combination of Ray Donoghue and Isabella Pace.
Coach of the Northern Hawks is Kellie Tahiri who Coached the Hawks Open team in 2012, when the team changed their name from the Northern Saints to the Northern Hawks, after securing sponsorship from the Hawthorn Football Club. Kellie Tahiri and Kingston Coach Shane Fishwere both selected as joint Coaches of the 2016 19U All Star team. Hawks 19U Assistant Coach is Michael Bird.
Below is a brief report on this crucial game, thanks to help from the Northern Hawks and a Kingston Blues supporter:
The match ups to start the game were as follows:
Kingston Blues GS Jess Earney v Northern Hawks GK Gabbi Groves
GA Lucy Street v GD Hannah Lenthall
WA Lucy Newton v WD Chelsea Filgate
C Isabelle Burden v C Sophie Davies
WD Georgia Jones v WA Lauren Spencer
GD Brigitte Clack v GA Annie Gough
GK Hannah Steinhauser v GS Olivia Roberts
Both teams struggled to find space and convert in the first quarter. Kingston led 8-6 at the first break, thanks largely to good work at the defensive end of the court by Georgia Jones, Brigitte Clack and Hannah Steinhauser.
In the 2nd quarter the Northern Hawks defenders Gabbi Groves, Hannah Lenthall and Chelsea Filgate were once again outstanding with their defensive pressure and they restricted Kingston to 9 goals for the quarter, while at the other end of the court the Hawks goalies scored 13 for the quarter to turn a 2 goal deficit into a 2 goal lead at the half-time break, with the score 19-17.
Kingston Blues Coaches Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon brought on Eloise Fox to WA to start the third quarter and Lucy Newton was shifted forward to GA; with Lucy Street rested. The Blues were magnificent in the vital third quarter, with pacy Centre court players Isabelle Burden and Eloise Fox impacting the game with their speed and nice feeding into goalies Lucy Newton and Jess Earney, who converted 11 times for the quarter as a combination; while at the other end of the court Kingston defenders Georgia Jones, Brigitte Clack and Hannah Steinhauser restricted the Northern Hawks to only 3 goals for the quarter; with the help of the defensive pressure from their mid-court players Isabelle Burden and Eloise Fox, along with their goalies Lucy Newton and Jess Earney. Brigitte Clack took several intercepts and made some great deflections reading the play well and using her quick feet to advantage. Kingston led 28-22 at the three quarter time interval, with all to play for in the last quarter.
The last quarter was a shootout with Kingston Blues winning the quarter 16-11; with the Blues attacking mid-court players Isabelle Burden and Eloise Fox feeding goalies Jess Earney and Lucy Newton with plenty of opportunities to score and the young 15 year old goalies were at their best and secured the win for the team as Kingston skipped out to a 44-33 victory, to stay in the race for the finals; with a big game next weekend against Burnie; who will be keen to upset both OHA & Kingston in next weekend’s double header.
Player of the Match was Awarded to Kingston’s Lucy Newton; who played the first half at WA and then the last half at GA. The left handed shooter converted a high percentage of shots taken and that proved to be a key factor in Kingston coming from behind at half-time to end up with a convincing win in what was a critical game for the team. Newton shot the ball beautifully against Karana a couple of weeks ago and is starting to find some nice shooting form in her first year in the State League competition. Lucy showed her versatility the night before against Cavaliers, when the coaching staff showed confidence in her, putting her back to GK for the vital last quarter of that game, with Hannah Steinhauser rested due to shin splints; in the hope that Hannah might be able to get through the crucial game against the Hawks, which she did. For a player who had never played in the GK position before, Lucy Newton did an exceptionally good job against a taller opponent, working very hard in the last line up of defence and she was the match winner in this game at the offensive end.
RACTi League - Round 9 - 19u - Kingston V Cavaliers
Round 10 of the Tasmanian Netball League commenced on Friday night with an upset result, with OHA securing their first win of the season defeating Arrows 50-46 in the State League 19U game @ the Hobart Netball & Sports Centre.
Kingston Blues who are in 7th place on the ladder, took on 2nd placed Cavaliers on Saturday afternoon, in the first of their two double header games at the Silverdome in Launceston.
Umpires for the game were Hannah Donoghue and Emma Reader.
Coach of the Cavaliers 19U team is Nicole Williams and Assistant Coach is Lydia Coote.
Coaches of the Kingston Blues 19U team are Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon.
The starting line-up for the Kingston Blues was as follows:
GS Jess Earney
GA Lucy Street
WA Eloise Fox
C Isabelle Burden
WD Georgia Jones
GD Brigitte Clack
GK Hannah Steinhauser
Subs were Lucy Newton and Ella Visser; with in form defender Abby Burnett away on the mainland & therefore unavailable for the Round 10 double header.
Maybe the highlight of the first quarter match ups was the Centre Court contest between Cavaliers highly rated young player Piper Sanders (who represented the State in the 17U team in 2017 & 2018) and Kingston Blues running machine Isabelle Burden, who has been in top form in the last two games against Karana and Arrows.
Cavaliers showed why they are a genuine Championship contender and started well, getting out to a 5-1 lead and they put plenty of pressure all over the court, on the young Kingston Blues team. The Blues worked hard and fought their way back into the contest; but Cavaliers scored the last 3 goals to lead 12-5 at the first change and looked to be in total control.
Kingston Blues again worked their way back into the game in the 2nd quarter and at one stage got within 3 goals of the Cavaliers, who responded to the challenge, but Kingston still won the quarter to reduce the margin back to 6 goals at the main break, with Cavaliers leading 21-15. All the Kingston players played well in the 2nd quarter.
Lucy Newton came onto the court at WA, to give the Kingston team some fresh legs for the vital 3rd quarter; with Eloise Fox rested as she was Umpiring in the Open Match of the Round to follow between the same two teams. Cavaliers Coach Nicole Williams moved Piper Sanders forward to WA to match up on Kingston’s All Star player from 2017 in Georgia Jones who was in very good form in the 2nd quarter at WD in this game, along with Brigitte Clack at GD (in the absence of Abby Burnett) and Hannah Steinhauser at GK.
Kingston won a high scoring 3rd quarter, 13 goals to 10 to reduce the margin back to 3 goals at the final change, with the score 31-28 in the favour of the home team Cavaliers. Kingston goalies Jess Earney and Lucy Street proved to be an effective combination in both the 2nd and third quarters and the Blues were right back in the game, with their gun Centre court player Isabelle Burden running hard and providing opportunities for the goalies to score.
Kingston Coaches Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon had to rest Hannah Steinhauser (playing with shin splints) for the last quarter and they made the bold decision to shift young goalie Lucy Newton, who played the 3rd quarter at WA; back to GK to start the last quarter. Ella Visser came on to GA and Lucy Street was moved out to WA. The last quarter was a riveting contest. Kingston goalies Jess Earney and Ella Visser rewarded the hard work done by Lucy Street and Isabelle Burden, by converting every shot in the last quarter as both teams went goal for goal. Kingston got within 1 goal of Cavaliers for the first time in the game with 35 seconds left on the clock. The Blues had possession and the next Centre pass and they got the ball into Jess Earney in the circle, who unselfishly tried to pass it off to Ella Visser who was in a better position under the basket; but Cavaliers got a hand on the ball and moved it up the other end, scoring just before the siren to win 42-39 in what was a great game of netball, between two very good teams.
Player of the Match was Kingston Goal Shooter Jess Earney who won her 2nd successive Best on Court award. Jess Earney again provided a strong target in the goal circle, converting 27 goals from 32 attempts. Jess scored 8 goals in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th quarters and didn’t miss a shot in the 2nd half of the game, which was one of the reasons why the Kingston Blues were able to fight back in this game.
RACTI League - Opens - Kingston V Arrows
The State League Open round 7 game between 2nd placed Arrows and 6th placed Kingston Blues @ the Hobart Netball & Sports Centre on Friday 1st June was due to be played on 11th May, but due to floods in Hobart that week, this game was postponed. Kingston might have fancied their chances on 11 May, as Arrows had lost 2 successive game to the Launceston teams Northern Hawks and Cavaliers, but with Premiership players Adriana Gough back from Germany last week and Hayley Sansom returning in this game as a fill-in player for Amy Rainbird, who was unavailable due to work commitments; the Blues were up against the odds in this contest.
The Umpires appointed to this game were Ray Donoghue and James Adams.
Coach of the Arrows team is Andrew Jackson who has Coached the team to three successive State League Premierships. Assistant Coach is Peter Brockman. Andrew Jackson also Coached the Kingston 19U team back in 2007 when the Blues won their first TNL 19U Premiership. Two current players in this game were part of the Kingston team in 2007; Chelsea Coleman and Jamie Philp, who has been recruited by Coach Andrew Jackson this season to help cover the loss of Emily Sharp and Hayley Sansom; although Sansom made a comeback in this game as a fill-in player and Coach Jackson will be keen for Hayley to play enough games to quality her for finals action in 2018.
Co Coaches of the Kingston Blues team are Erin Baker and Alicia Leis.
The starting line-ups for both teams were as follows:
Gemma Polley GS Kingston v Zoe Gough Arrows GK
Chelsea Coleman GA v Ellie Fleming GD
Greta Shelton WA v Tiena Meaclem WD
Lucy Bosker C v Aj Gough C
Sarah Scott WD v Jamie Philp WA
Laura Elliott GD v Natasha Shirley GA
Emma Johns GK v Sophie Gunn GS
Subs for Kingston were Makenzie Adams, Rebecca Hyland and Millie von Stieglitz. Millie was on the bench, but was not playing in this game having being diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue and although Millie is keen to play this season, she is being carefully managed by the Blues coaching staff.
Subs for Arrows were Hayley Sansom, Felicity George and Emma Lawson.
A highlight of first quarter was the Centre court match-up between Arrows Aj Gough and Kingston’s Lucy Bosker who is in career best form. The first quarter was a shootout which Arrows won 18-14. Sophie Gunn scored 17 of the team’s 18 goals from 18 attempts; with Aj Gough, Jamie Philp and Natasha Shirley all successfully finding their star goalie. For Kingston their 190cm GS Gemma Polley scored 10 goals from 11 attempts and their attacking players Lucy Bosker, Greta Shelton and Chelsea Coleman were all effective in the first quarter.
Both teams went into the 2nd quarter with unchanged line-ups and this quarter was almost a replay of the first quarter. A highlight in this quarter was the long high passes by Aj Gough into Sophie Gunn who scored 15 goals from 17 attempts, while Gemma Polley for the 2nd successive quarter converted 10 goals from 11 attempts. Arrows led at half-time 37-28.
Rebecca Hyland came on for Kingston at GK to commence the third term, with Emma Johns rested; while Arrows Coach Andrew Jackson brought on Hayley Sansom to WA; Jamie Philp switched into the Centre, while Aj Gough was moved back to WD and Tiena Meaclem was rested. Arrows were at their brilliant best in the championship quarter scoring 19 goals for the 2nd successive quarter with Sophie Gunn scoring all of those 19 goals from 20 attempts, despite some good defensive intensity from Rebecca Hyland. Arrows defenders Zoe Gough, Ellie Fleming and Aj Gough suffocated the Blues in this quarter, who were only able to manage 9 goals; as Arrows skipped out to a 19 goal lead at the last change, with the score 56-37 and the game all over bar the shouting.
Andrew Jackson switched Aj Gough back to GD for the last quarter; Tiena Meaclem came back on to WD, with Ellie Fleming rested after doing an outstanding job in the 3rd quarter limiting the impact of Blues GA Chelsea Coleman. Kingston Coaches Erin Baker and Alicia Leis brought on Makenzie Adams to GA and Emma Johns to GD for the last quarter and rested Lucy Bosker and Captain Laura Elliott. Greta Shelton was moved from WA to C and Chelsea Coleman from GA to WA. The main interest in this quarter was whether Arrows could win the quarter and keep their 10 year record in tact re beating Kingston by 20 goals or more.
Arrows started the last quarter well and increased their lead to 21 goals, but from then on it was goal for goal. The Centre court contest between the two ex Karana players Jamie Philp and Greta Shelton was an interesting one, with the experienced Philp up against her younger ex team-mate who is one of the fittest players in the competition. Not sure who was winning this contest, but I would have been backing Greta Shelton late in the game, but she ended up injurying an ankle and had to leave the court half way through the quarter and was replaced by Lucy Bosker. Kingston finished the game strongly over the last 5 minutes, playing their best quarter of netball for the season and maybe their best quarter of netball for many years as they held Arrows to just 12 goals and racked up 16 themselves; with Gemma Polley scoring 10 goals and Makenzie Adams 6. Arrows won 68 to 53 to secure 2nd place on the ladder and set up an almost certain 2nd semi-final clash with the Northern Hawks which should be a ripping game.
Rebecca Hyland playing at GK held Sophie Gunn to 8 goals and this would be one of only a few times over recent years where the Arrows giant shooter has been kept to single digits in a quarter. Emma Johns at GD was instrumental in setting up scoring opportunities for the Blues goalies Adams and Polley, with some long accurate passes, getting the ball out of the defensive end and quickly into the attacking third of the court. Sarah Scott did a good job in this quarter up against Hayley Sansom, the ex Tassie Spirit player and 3 time Premiership player who won the TNL Best and Fairest Award in 2015. Sansom looked like she had never missed a game and was at her brilliant best in the third quarter, in her first quarter on the court since last year’s Grand Final; but Sarah Scott the Blues young 2016 & 2017 19U Premiership player and All Star 19U Centre player in both those years, showed that she doesn’t mind a challenge playing on the biggest names in the game and she did an excellent job in the last quarter in limiting the influence of Hayley Sansom. Lucy Bosker finished the game strongly and she did well in the first half matching up against Arrows Aj Gough, who also was in brilliant form herself. Chelsea Coleman after a good first half at GA and then a quiet 3rd quarter, did well at WA in the last quarter; in a position in which she excelled for the Northern Hawks in the last third of the season in 2014, when the team went on a 7 game winning streak, until losing narrowly in the first semi-final to Cripps who under Coach Aaron Pidgeon went all the way from 4th place to win the Championship that year, beating Arrows in the Grand Final. Makenzie Adams combined well with Gemma Polley and was outstanding in the last quarter playing on Aj Gough who was sensational for the first 3 quarters in this game, but may have tired in the last quarter from the effects of a viral illness which she caught during the week. Gemma Polley was also outstanding in the last quarter as she was for the whole game and was only kept quiet in the third quarter by Zoe Gough due to the lack of supply from her team-mates in this quarter.
Player of the Match was Awarded to Arrows GS Sophie Gunn who scored 59 goals from 65 attempts. Sophie normally scores around 50 goals per game against the better teams in the competition and in this game she had accumulated 51 goals by three quarter time, with the help of her team-mates Natasha Shirley, Jamie Philp, Hayley Sansom and Aj Gough who all fed up their 189cm shooter with plenty of well executed passes and the tall, strong experienced goalie did the rest. Sophie Gunn is a big fish in the small pond of the Tasmanian State League, but she has proven over the past decade that she is a top class goalie, having had success playing the Victorian State League and also when playing for the Tassie Spirit team in the Australian National League.
Arrows other player who deserves special mention in this game is Aj Gough who was awarded Player of the Match in her first game back last week after returning from Germany. Aj Gough is unquestionably one of the best players to have played in the State League over the past decade, having commended her career in the TNL Open competition as a 15 year old with the Northern Hawks. Gough was arguably the best player in the TNL in 2016, playing mostly at GD for Arrows and rotating occasionally at WD. In this game she started in the Centre, where she has played occasionally in her early career with the Northern Hawks. Aj was a standout player in the first half and may well be the fittest and hardest working player ever to have played in the Tasmanian State League, and she has good skills to match and has proven in recent years that the harder you work off the court, the more influence you have on it.
The Kingston Blues have a double header in Launceston this weekend against the Cavaliers and the Northern Hawks and if they can repeat their last quarter form in this game they will be in with a chance of winning one of their two games on the road, which they need to do, with the race for 3rd and 4th spot likely to the very tight. The Cavaliers and Kingston look to be the 3rd and 4th best teams in the competition, but Cripps and Karana are still in with a chance to play finals and if Cavaliers or Kingston stumble down the back stretch; then Cripps and Karana will be ready to pounce on a finals opportunity, but they will most likely need to beat Cavaliers or Kingston or both to give themselves a chance of playing finals in 2018.
RACTi League - 19u - Kingston V Arrows
The Round 7 washout game due to the heavy rain and strong wind on Thursday night 10th May, was replayed at the Hobart Netball & Sports Centre on Friday 1st June between Arrows and Kingston Blues. The 19U game was a replay of last year’s Grand Final. The 19U competition is more even this year than any season over the past decade as there is very little separating the top 7 teams. Kingston were in 7th place going into this game and Arrows were in 3rd place.
Umpires for the game were Leah Turnbull and Hannah Donoghue.
The Co-Coaches of the Kingston Blues are Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon.
Arrows Coach is Sheree Kemp who is Assisted this year by Jamie Philp, who plays in the Arrows Open team and has 10 years experience playing in the State League competition; 5 with Kingston and 5 with Karana. Jamie was a member of the first ever Kingston Blues team to win a State League 19U Premiership in 2007, under Coach Andrew Jackson. Her last year with Kingston was in 2011 which was Andrew Jackson’s first year as Coach of the Kingston Blues Open team. During Jamie’s 5 years with Karana she was Vice-Captain in 2014 and Captain in 2016.
The starting line-ups to commence the game were as follows:
Jess Earney GS Kingston v Bridget Haydon GK Arrows
Lucy Street GA v Alanna Cooper GD
Georgia Jones WA v Chelsea Jarvis WD
Isabelle Burden C v Felicity George C
Brigitte Clack WD v Emma Lawson WA
Abby Burnett GD v Stacey Fox GA
Hannah Steinhauser GK v Mollie-Lee Dwyer GS
Subs for Kingston were Eloise Fox and Ella Visser, with Open players Sarah Scott and Makenzie Adams added to the bench in case of injury to any players.
Subs for Arrows were Chelsea Assmann, Chelsea Cashinella and Ashlea Harper.
Possibly the highlight of the match ups to start the game was the Centre court contest between Kingston Blues in form Centre player Isabelle Burden and Arrows Captain Felicity George. Kingston Blues played their best game of the season in their last match against Karana; and they continued that form in the first quarter to take a convincing 11-6 lead at the 1st change.
Arrows Coach Sheree Kemp brought onto the court Ashlea Harper to start the 2nd quarter and Stacey Fox and Mollie-Lee Dwyer switched positions at the attacking end, with Fox moving to GS and Dwyer out to GA. Switching Stacey Fox to GS proved to be productive with Arrows winning the quarter 10 goals to 9, with Stacey Fox scoring all 10 of Arrows goals from 10 attempts at 100% accuracy. Arrows were back in the contest with the half-time score 20-16.
The third quarter didn’t disappoint; it was a riveting contest between two teams hungry for a win. Both teams scored 11 goals for the quarter, with Stacey Fox once again the stand out player for Arrows scoring all their goals for the 2nd quarter in succession; this time converting 11 goals from 12 attempts. The Kingston Blues led 31-27 at the last change.
Kingston Blues were hungry for a win and all their players were magnificent in the last quarter. Lucy Street was presenting strongly in the circle and the GA player scored 8 goals in the last quarter, while for Arrows Stacey Fox scored 7 goals from 8 attempts; but the Blues depth of talent throughout the court proved to be the difference in the end; as they outscored Arrows 12 goals to 8 to win 43-35 and keep their finals hopes alive; with a crucial double header in Launceston to follow this weekend.
Player of the Match was Kingston Goal Shooter Jess Earney who scored 20 goals for the Blues. The Blues young 15 year-old Goal Shooter is a very strong player in the Circle and Represented Tasmania in the State 15U team last season. Jess missed the game against Cripps due to injury, but has played well in every game that she has played this season and has rewarded Coaches Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon who selected her in the team this season, at such a young age.
Kingston had plenty of good players in this game and they all deserve a mention.
Hannah Steinhauser had the big task of matching up on Arrows goalie Stacey Fox and despite Fox being Arrows best player on the night; Hannah worked hard and did well, at times restricting the influence of Arrows key player, who had the ability to win the game almost on her own. Hannah played her first full game after being sidelined with shin splints; after only playing 1 quarter in the previous game against Karana. Hannah is a key player at the defensive her due to her height and at 186 cm she is also very agile.
Abby Burnett – the talented left handed player is versatile and can play in a few positions, but is starting to make the GD position her own. Abby was a key player in this game, working hard in the GD position and combining well with Hannah Steinhauser and Brigitte Clack; to give Kingston Blues arguably the best defensive end in the competition.
Brigitte Clack – the 17 year old Premiership player is part of the teams leadership group as she leads by example in every game that she plays. Brigitte played exceptionally well in the WD position in this game, reading the play well and working hard to make crucial interceptions/deflections.
Isabelle Burden – the 16 year old recruit has been getting better with each game. Isabelle won the Player of the Match Ward in Kingston’s first win over OHA and increased her influence in the next game against Karana game and again in this one, with her use of the ball being exceptionally good over the past two matches and that combined with her high fitness level , running hard for 4 quarters; she provided goalies Jess Earney and Lucy Street with plenty of opportunities to post a winning score. Isabelle is a good defensive player as well, working hard and using her quick feet to advantage.
Georgia Jones – another 17 year old Premiership player who is in the Blues leadership group this season. Georgia is a hard working Centre court player who has good skills and can play in all three mid-court positions. Georgia played 4 solid quarters at WA in this game, in the position in which she was selected last season in the TNL 19U All Star team as a 16 year-old player (started the season as a 15 year old player) in her first season in the TNL.
Lucy Street – the third 17 year-old Premiership player in the Blues 19U leadership group. Lucy showed in this game why she earned that position; working hard @ GA for 4 quarters, winning plenty of contested possessions in the circle and proved to be a match winner playing against a talented player in Alanna Cooper, who represented the State last year in the 17U team and this year in the State 19U team.
Eloise Fox – didn’t get onto the court in this game; but Eloise is a very highly skilled mid-court player and will be a key player when she gets onto the court in the vital double header games this weekend in Launceston against the Cavaliers and the Northern Hawks.
Ella Visser – warmed the bench in this game, but didn’t take the court as she is recovering from an ankle injury. Ella is a versatile player who can play as a back-up goalie to Jess Earney, Lucy Street and Lucy Newton. Ella has good pace and skills and can play in the mid-court and also at the defensive end if the Blues need an option back there due to injuries to any of the key defenders.
Lucy Newton – the other 15 year old goalie, missed this game due to a school camp; but she showed her shooting skills in the last game against Karana, and has been used mostly at GA in conjunction with Lucy Street. Lucy did also play one quarter at WA in the game against Karana; using the ball well in that game and finding the goalies when she gained possession.
Lastly mention should be made of the performance of Arrows goalie Stacey Fox who scored 33 goals out of her teams 35 goals, from 37 attempts. Stacey’s performance in all three finals last year was exceptional and I can’t recall seeing too many better athletes playing as goalies in the TNL 19U competition than Stacey Fox. She is a confidence shooter from medium to longer range and that may be one part of her game that can be improved; but playing close to the basket she is very hard to stop; due to her height, strength and good footwork. Stacey missed most of the pre-season due to illness; so it is good to see her back in action and she looks a genuine State player in either netball or in the AFLW competition, if she decides to pursue a football career. If there are any North Melbourne Kangaroos talent scouts in Tasmania; they should take a look at this athlete and get her signature asap.
STNA Round 11 - 15b - Kingston White V Kilburn Blue
The 12.10pm Saturday afternoon game in the 15b competition between Kilburn Blue and Kingston White was played on the show court no. 5 . Two quality umpires were appointed to this game; the experienced Ray Donoghue who umpired the State League Open game between Arrows and Kingston Blues the night before, and talented young umpire Jess Clow from Kilburn.
The match was a close contest all game and the last quarter was a nail biter for the parents, but experienced Coach John Fox looked as cool as a cucumber on the sidelines, as his players all rose to the occasion late in the game, when the pressure was on as Kilburn twice got to within two goals and had the ball in their attacking end, both times with the Centre pass to follow.
Below is a report on the game from Kingston White Coach John Fox and some comments on the players in his team.
Kingston White went into their match against Kilburn Blue with maybe a few more nerves that usual. 15 & Under Division 2 is very tight - with Kingston having won six, drawn two and lost one, they sat in second place, with the top six very close together on points.
When these two team played each other in Round 1, the Blues were victorious 34-15, but most of that lead was established in the first half, and Kilburn were hard to put away.
Tall, experienced goalie Maya Prescott was missing from today’s Round 11 match with an ankle injury, so the starting lineup saw Bridie Adams at GS, Jorja Bryson at GA, Tess Allanby at WA, Georgia Lamprill at C, Lucy Clifford at WD, Abbie Vince at GD and Marli Irwin at GK. Ella Bradburn started on the bench.
A sketchy start saw Kilburn nab the first two goals, before Kingston started to get their game into gear. Interceptions from Clifford and Irwin saw the ball moved smartly down the court, but Adams and Bryson were forced into taking long shots which failed to drop, and the match descended into an arm wrestle. At 1/4 time, the score was an underwhelming 5-4.
Co-captains Adams and Clifford led the talk at the break, an innovation (gamble? crazy idea?) by the coach where the players run their own feedback at the minor breaks, while he takes the half-time talk.
Bradburn entered the game to replace Allanby at WA, and the pattern of the game continued, with Irwin becoming more dominant, winning numerous balls with her aggressive floating defence, and Vince's hard work on her opponent also paying dividends. Clifford was also regularly getting hands on ball, but it was hard for the Blues to break away while Kilburn nailed most of their shots and the Kingston goals just refused to regularly drop. Nonetheless, the difference grew to two at the main break.
Allanby returned to the court in the WA position she has made her own, with Bradburn moving back to C and Lamprill coming off for a rest. Finally, the goals started to go in, as Adams found her range and Bryson some good spaces around her. Irwin became more dominant if it was possible, and the Kilburn attackers must having been checking over their shoulders to see where she was coming from next. Despite what felt like a great quarter, the score was still close at 3/4 time, when the final change was made - Bradburn completed her tour of the centre court, moving to WD while Lamprill came back to C and Clifford came off.
With three minutes to go in the game, the lead was still only 3 goals, and Kilburn twice had the ball in their circle, only for Kingston to win it back, turn it over and win it back again. Finally the game was put to bed with two quick goals and the Blues ran out 24-19 winners to maintain their second place on a crowded ladder.
Marli Irwin has been a revelation in defence this year, with her time in the DADA squad seeing her natural competitiveness and enthusiasm now teamed with some good footwork skills to make her a constant threat.
Abbie Vince had one of her best games in defence, working doggedly to control her opponent's movement.
Co-captain Lucy Clifford swinging between WD and C provides a constant contest for anyone she plays on, and got plenty of intercepts in this game. Lucy can be relied on to give constant effort and analysis to whatever position she plays (even GK!).
Georgia Lamprill has settled into the C position, where her strong shoulder pass and timing onto the circle have seen her find a place to become a key contributor.
Despite being a decent goalie, Tess Allanby has been largely playing WA this season due to having an abundance of shooters in the team and her own powerful drive onto the circle edge.
Like today, Ella Bradburn has played all three centre court positions, displaying her versatility and athleticism. She loves a long pass and displayed that a couple of times today at WD, hitting Bridie Adams up the middle.
Jorja Bryson is a calm GA with a nice shot from mid range, and works well around the taller goalies that she is sharing court positions with. She’s also had to play some WD and even GK this year, where she’s shown good defensive instincts.
Bridie Adams is the other co-captain, bringing her cheeky presence to the leadership role. As GS or sometimes GA, she’s very mobile for a tall goalie and never afraid to take a long shot.
Maya Prescott is an imposing presence in the circle as either GA or GS. She can be relied upon for her consistent scoring output and rebounding, as well as providing a strong target for her feeders.
STNA Round 10 - 11a - Kingston Blue V Cripps
The match of the day in Round 10 of the 11a competition was between top team Cripps and 2nd placed Kingston Blue, on court 9 at 9.50am.
The 2017 champions Cripps were a class above their opposition in the 11a competition last season; but this year both the Kingston Blue and Karana teams are both genuine contenders, although Cripps are still the hot favourites to win the title again this season, being unbeaten after 10 rounds.
The Kingston Blue team is coached by Kingston Blues 2018 State League Open Captain Laura Elliott. Laura coached the 11U White team in 2016 & 2017 and this year she is Coaching the 11U Blue team in the Div 1 competition. Assistant Coach is Courtney Walker who plays for the Kingston 21U team and was a member of the Kingston 17U Div 1 team that won the Premiership in 2016.
Umpires for the game were Tanaya Pitt from the Kingborough Tigers and Marsha Batchelor from the South East Suns.
The Kingston 11U Blue team's starting line-up was as follows:
Mia Clifford - Goal Shooter
Divinia Mills - Goal Attack
Bella Oakley - Wing Attack
Bella Quin - Centre
Jeremiah Ambrose - Wing Defence
Olivia Jones - Goal Defence
Lola Alexander - Goal Keeper
Subs were Indiana Coulson, Kailia Clark and Ella Perry
The first quarter was evenly contested, but Cripps got out to a 6-1 lead at quarter-time with their quality shooters converting a high percentage of their opportunities.
Kingston Blue Coach Laura Elliott brought on Indiana Coulson to WA, Kailia Clark to WD and Ella Perry to GK to start the 2nd quarter, plus moved Bella Oakley from WA to GA and Jeremiah Ambrose from WD into the Centre. The highlight of the quarter was the shooting exhibition by Kingston's smallest player Bella Oakley who showed her class in the first quarter at WA and then demonstrated her versatility by shooting the ball with precision as Kingston matched Cripps goal for goal in this quarter, with both teams scoring 5 goals.
Cripps won both the 3rd and 4th quarters and showed why they are the best team in this competition, pulling way to win 28-13; but the Kingston Blue team aren't too far behind them, as they showed in their first round contest in which they matched Cripps for three quarters.
The Kingston Blue 11U team have a mid-court chock full of skillful players in Bella Quin, Jeremiah Ambrose, Indiana Coulson and Bella Oakley; plus they have some offensive scoring power and showed that last week when they scored 41 goals against Palena. Their goalies are Mia Clifford, the little left hander shooter, taller double handed shooter Divinia Mills, Bella Oakley who was the star shooter in this game and Kailia Clark who can play at both ends of the court. At the defensive end the Kingston Blue team have plenty of talented players in Lola Alexander, Olivia Jones, Ella Perry and Kahlia Clark.
Below are some comments by Coach Laura Elliott on all the players in the team:
Divinia Mills (GA, GS) - played in 11 Aqua last year, but has really risen to the challenge in 11U Div 1, being the main scorer for the team.
Mia Clifford (GS, GA) - she may be smaller then most of her opponents, but has one of the best shooting techniques in the age competition.
Bella Oakley (WA, C) - a dynamic WA that you can put into the goal circle to mix things up. Despite her height she can sink some long bombs.
Indiana Coulson (WA, C, WD) - a naturally skilled player and team clown. She has strong passes and good vision down the court.
Jeremiah Ambrose (C, WD, WA) - a quiet achiever that forever gives his all, both at training and in games. Always works hard to get the ball both in attack and defense.
Bella Quin (C, WA, WD) - A little pocket rocket that can run and run. Not afraid to put her [small] body on the line to win the ball.
Kailia Clark (WD, GK, GS) - a versatile player that can play at either end of the court. She can read the play well and cover ground quickly when her opponent least expects it.
Ella Perry (WD, GD, GK) - Can play in any defensive position on the court. Plays the defensive structures well and is good on the GK throw in.
Olivia Jones (GD, C) - Provides great height and speed wherever she lines up on the court. Reads the play really well which results in lots of intercepts.
Lola Alexander (GK, WD) - Adds nice height in either defensive position. Sticks tight on her player and runs through to take the intercept.
Premier League Round 10 - Kingston V Cripps
The match of the round in Wednesday night’s Round 10 of the Premier League was between 3rd placed Kingston Blues and 4th placed Cripps Waratah; with these two teams already looking likely to meet later in the season in the elimination first semi-final.
The last game between these two teams ended up in a thrilling draw, but since then Cripps have had the services of State League mid-court player Elise Barwick; while Kingston have lost tall experienced goalie Jo Stevenson due to family commitments; Emily-Kate Garvey is away overseas on holiday and Lindy Aplin was not playing in this game due to severe blisters on her feet after running in a 100k marathon last weekend. Kingston Coach Pete Visser brought in Div 1 Premiership defender Paige Scott for last week’s game against Huon Valley and this week he secured the services of Kingston 19U Premiership player Brigitte Clack, who came into the team for her 2nd game of the season. Lindy Aplin sat on the bench but would not play unless required due to player injury.
The match ups to start the game were as follows:
GS Sophie Visser Kingston v GK Kate Patmore Cripps
GA Rebecca Strong v GD Hannah Fazackerley
WA Olivia McGow v WD Madeleine Paine
C Erin Lucas v C Lucy Baines
WD Ashlee Bellamy v WA Isabella Pace
GD Brigitte Clack v GA Nikki Cunliffe
GK Jen Hanlon v GS Sarah Pidgeon
Subs for Cripps were Vanessa Regan and Elise Barwick
Sub for Kingston was Lindy Aplin
In the last meeting between these two teams Kingston dominated the first quarter and led by 8 goals at the first change. This time Cripps experienced GS Sarah Pidgeon (ex Kingston State League player) started on the court; but Kingston still dominated the quarter and led 10-6 at the quarter-time break.
Cripps brought on Vanessa Regan to GA and Elise Barwick into the Centre, but these changes had no effect and Kingston continued to score heavily at one end of the court and contained the Cripps goalies at the other end. Kingston led 24-15 at the half-time break.
Cripps Coach Kirra Parsons moved Elise Barwick back to WD to match up on Kingston’s WA Olivia McGow; being a match-up between two of the competitions quickest players. This quarter was dominated by both teams defensive end. Cripps defenders Kate Patmore, Hannah Fazackerley and Elise Barwick were all very effective and they held Kingston to their lowest quarter score for the season, with the Blues only scoring 4 goals for the quarter; while at the other end of the court Kingston’s defenders Jen Hanlon, Brigitte Clack and Ashlee Bellamy were outstanding for the third successive quarter, restricting Cripps to only 8 goals which allowed Kingston to go into the last quarter with a 5 goal lead, the score being 28-23 at the last change. Late in the quarter Kingston Goal Attack Rebecca Strong was taken from the court with a bad ankle injury and Lindy Aplin came on to WD. Coach Pete Visser moved Ashlee Bellamy into the Centre and Erin Lucas moved forward to Goal Attack.
The stage was set for another last quarter thriller; as Kingston had lost their sharp shooter and Lindy Aplin was playing on tip toes with badly blistered feet. Cripps although 5 goals down would have sensed an opportunity for a come from behind win. The versatile Erin Lucas who was brilliant in the first half in the Centre, missed her first two shots playing out of her normal position at Goal Attack and Cripps got within 3 goals early in the quarter, but the Blues lifted led by Olivia McGow and Ashlee Bellamy in the mid-court and shooters Erin Lucas and Sophie Visser who found space and both scored 4 consecutive goals as the Blues matched Cripps goalies Sarah Pidgeon and Vanessa Regan with both teams scoring 11 goals for the quarter. Sophie Visser and Sarah Pidgeon both scored 6 goals for the quarter at GS, while Erin Lucas and Vanessa Regan both scored 5 goals for their teams from the GA position.
Kingston won 39-34 being up against the odds having lost their Goal Attack Rebecca Strong late in the third quarter, plus missing last year’s Captain and All Star GK Emily-Kate Garvey who is away overseas for a few weeks and losing Lindy Aplin, although she courageously entered the court in the last quarter.
Player of the Match was Awarded to Kingston’s Erin Lucas.
Below is a comment on the players performance in this game, which was arguably the Kingston Blues Premier League team’s best win of the season; certainly right up there with their first round wins against last year’s Grand Finalists AYC & Karana.
Sophie Visser GS – scored 23 goals and has been brilliant in the last two games playing 4 quarters at GS, following the loss of tall goalie Jo Stevenson who had to withdraw from the team due to family commitments. Stevenson was a big loss as she was running into very good form; but Sophie Visser the Kingston State League 19U Premiership player from last season has risen to the occasion in the Premier League and has been a focal point for the team in the goal circle, working hard for 4 quarters at the attacking end over the past two games.
Rebecca Strong – has been in very good shooting form once again this season and has combined well with Sophie Visser at the attacking end. Was shooting at around the 80% mark in this game and was a big loss late in the third quarter after badly rolling her ankle. Hopefully there is no break and Rebecca may be back in the team within a month.
Olivia McGow – the Blues quickest player is highly skilled and has been in career best form over the past two games along with Erin Lucas; with both players super fit due to playing/training for football and netball 5 days per week. McGow and Lucas are almost putting as much time into their sports as AFL footballers; but just aren’t getting paid as much.
Erin Lucas – has been awarded back to back Player of the Match Awards over the past two weeks. Lucas did it all in this game, both offensively and defensively. Her first half performance in the Centre was outstanding, winning plenty of contested possessions and using the ball well, bringing players in front of her into the game and working hard defensively. A highlight of the match in the 2nd quarter was two consecutive passes over Cripps GK Kate Patmore, which found Sophie Visser under the basket. Erin was the match winner in the last quarter, working hard at Goal Attack, finding space easily and converting 5 goals, playing in a position in which she does not normally play. The Blues will miss their versatile match-winner next game, as she will be away due to a work conference.
Ashlee Bellamy – played three very good quarters at WD and did well in the crucial Centre position in the last quarter. Has played two very good games against Cripps this season and is one of Coach Pete Visser’s favourite players. Ashlee uses the ball well and is a good offensive player who rarely turns the ball over.
Brigitte Clack – playing in her 2nd game of the season, the State League 19U player showed why she is in the leadership group in the 19U team, with another outstanding performance in this game; so much so that Cripps official scorer Aaron Pidgeon commented later in the third quarter that Brigitte was best on court at that stage of the game. Brigitte reads the play beautifully and enjoys playing in the more physical Premier League games where she hunts the ball and gets plenty of intercepts as she did in this game. With plenty of players unavailable at the moment, Coach Peter Visser will be hoping to secure Brigitte again for next Wednesday night’s game against top team Karana.
Jen Hanlon – The Captain and 2016 Premiership player and All Star GK has once again returned after a year out of the game and is in career best form, have secured a few Best on Court Awards at the half way mark of the season. Jen was Awarded Player of the Match in the first round drawn game against Cripps and played even better in Wednesday night’s game, working hard as always in the vital GK position and keeping Cripps most experienced shooter Sarah Pidgeon down to just 19 goals. Jen was again inspirational in this game and would most likely have scored 1 vote, being just behind Erin Lucas and Brigitte Clack in the Blues list of best players; and they had plenty of them.
Lindy Aplin – the Blues oldest player is also their fittest player. Lindy is a highly skilled player and she showed enormous courage coming on to the court with badly blistered feet and even secured a couple of crucial intercepts in the last quarter, which helped her team to get over the line for what was a great win.
Coach Pete Visser – an astute tactician who has been outstanding with his player rotations to date this season and has been able to secure key players when the team has needed them due to player unavailability; having brought in Brigitte Clack for 2 games and sisters Sarah & Paige Scott for one game each; with all three players playing key roles in the teams wins in these 3 games.
STNA Round 9 - 13b Kingston White V Karana
2nd placed Kingston Blues went in as firm favourites against 7th placed Karana on Court 7 at 9.50am in last Saturday’s Round 9 game in the 13b competition. The Karana team were without their Coach Sharni Jordan; but she found a handy replacement for the day in Kaitlyn Petrie who plays for the Karana State League Open team and is a member of the Tasmania Magpies 2018 squad that plays in the Australian National League competition.
The Kingston White team are coached by the mother/daughter combination of Tania and Isabelle Mayne. Umpires for the game were Mia Visser and Tameika Ponting from OHA.
The starting line-up for the Kingston White team was as follows:
GS Bronte Johnson
GA Tahlia Sculthorpe
WA Lucy Carr
C Jade Brouwer
WD Vanessa Hansson
GD Jess Owen
GK Natalie Bond
Subs were Sophie Dance, Rohini Sharma and Jess Sypkes
Karana started well and were up for the contest under their high profile Coach and led 6-5 at the quarter-time break.
Kingston White Coaches Tania and Isabelle Mayne brought on Rohini Sharma to Goal Attack, Sophie Dance to Wing Defence and Jess Sypkes to Goal Defence as well as moving Lucy Carr from WA to C in a swap with Jade Brouwer who moved forward to WA. These changes proved to be effective as Kingston White dominated the 2nd quarter in every position on the court, scoring 10 goals and restricting Karana to only 3 for the quarter. Tall athletic goalie Rohini Sharma showed her class scoring 8 goals from 9 attempts as Kingston led 15-9 at the half time break.
Tahlia Sculthorpe came back on to the court at GA for the 3rd quarter and Rohini Sharma moved into the circle at GS. The Kingston defence was once again impassable and they restricted Karana for the 2nd successive quarter to only 3 qoals, while at the other end Kingston’s highly skilled goalies scored 11 goals for the quarter; Rohni Sharma scoring 5 goals from 6 attempts at GS and Tahlia Sculthorpe scoring 6 goals from 8 attempts at GA; as the 2nd placed Kingston White team stretched their lead out to a match winning margin with the score 26-12 at the last change.
Karana finished well winning the last quarter convincingly scoring 7 goals to 3, so one suspects that the Kingston Coaches may have given the players some extra laps and push-ups to do at training this week due to going through the motions in the last quarter; however winners are grinners and the Kingston White team won 29-19, playing outstanding netball in both the 2nd and 3rd quarters.
In a team of 10 where there are 4 plus changes in the line up each quarter this team has adapted incredibly to the constant churn and are all willing to play any position they are asked to, and work hard to learn each position for each other, Isabelle and Tania are extremely proud of their efforts. Below are a few thoughts about each player.
Bronte Jonson – as a shooter has worked hard this year on her circle movement and has seen results becoming an imposing combination with Rohini
Rohini Sharma – a tall accurate unselfish reliable goalie who is always offering for the ball and making smart pass options
Tahlia Sculthorpe – is an impact player, as a shooter has great movement in the circle, incredible speed from a standing start, and strong takes of the ball in the air or at ground level
Lucy Carr – is an enthusiastic centre courter who always works hard to the ball, an excellent sense of court space and ball placement on feeds into the circle
Jade Brouwer – strong, fit centre courter who thinks a lot about space and always puts in a solid reliable game
Vanessa Hansson – an excellent centre court defensive player, destined for a career at wd – her effort and work ethic has seen her passing and drives improve dramatically over the season
Jess Owen – a tall defence player with a great deal of potential has an outstanding lean over the shot with a mountain of clean rejections to her name so far this season
Natalie Bond – a surprise packet this year has developed amazingly over 10 rounds, in the keeper position is a formidable rebounder and makes a contest out of every ball that comes into the circle
Sophie Dance – was born for the wd position, can be counted on to consistently deflect or intercept opposition centre passes and if not has excellent hands over pressure on the next pass
Jess Sypkes – consistently racks up 4 or 5 intercepts a game, for a shorter defence player she is a clever player that works hard to make intercept opportunities for herself
STNA Round 9 - 11b - Kingston White V SE Suns
Round 9 of the STNA competition featured a fund raising event for Mental Health awareness, called Speak Up Stay Chatty, which was organized by Umpire Isabella Pace, who was assisted by Jason Nicholls. Teams were encouraged to wear colourful socks and money was donated for a good cause. While the Kingston Aqua 13c team won the prize for the most colourful socks; the Kingston White team weren't too far behind and as well as wearing colourful socks; the talented young team put on an exhibition, showcasing plenty of skill as the young team beat the South East Suns 20-4 in what was an impressive performance. The Suns had some exciting young players too and a highlight of the first quarter was the Centre court match-up between two super quick mid-court players, Mia Cross for Kingston White and Misha Barwon for the South East Suns.
Co Coaches of the Suns team are Elise Devereaux & Grace Beven. Umpires were Brooke Sheppard from Kilburn and Stella Lambert from Palena. Stella being in this years Junior Development Group.
Below is Coach Caroline Direen's report on the game. Co-Coach Michelle Turner was away in Launceston with daughter Ashlea trialing for the State 15U team.
Coaches of the Kingston Blues U11 White are Caz Direen and Michelle Turner.
The starting line up for Kingston was:
GS - Ella Carr
GA - Maddi Clark
WA - Bella Turner
C - Mia Cross
WD - Paige Lucas
GD - Bella Hursey
GK - Charlotte Grubb
Substitutes - Ashlee Coombe and Tiyana Ransom
It was a very defensive match within the first quarter and Kingston defenders Paige Lucas, Bella Hursey and Charlotte Grubb worked hard and were very effective in stopping the flow of the Suns attackers, whereas Ella Carr and Maddi Clark capitalised on their opportunities and the Blues led 4-1 at the end of the first quarter.
Changes were made for the second quarter with Ashlee Coombe coming into the defensive circle to team up with Charlotte, moving Bella Hursey into C, and Tiyana Ransom coming on to WA, moving Bella Turner into GA. Again the defensive pressure all over the court helped the team to score 5 goals to the Suns 1 and at the half time break the Blues were up 9 - 2.
In the third quarter Maddi Clark teamed up with Bella Turner in the goal circle and this was the highest scoring quarter for the match with Bella Turner scoring 6 goals, ably assisted with great feeding from Mia Cross at C. Whilst down the defensive end the trio of Tiyana, Bella Hursey and Ashlee kept the Suns scoreless and heading into the last quarter the score was 16 - 2.
The fourth quarter Caz Direen rang in the changes with some players going into positions that were unfamiliar to them, but this didn’t seem to affect the girls as they continued to build on their lead with another four goals added to the score and at the final whistle the Blues had won 20 - 4.
With this win it keeps the girls in third position on the ladder.
Ella Carr - works well in the goal circle with whomever she is partnered with, works hard on shooting to reward the team
Maddi Clark - with her height and attacking and defensive skills is an asset at either end of the court
Bella Turner - although small in stature has a lovely shooting action, adaptable to play through centre court to good effect also
Mia Cross - is a player that can adapt to any position, but is dominant in the C position and just keeps on going like the Duracell bunny
Paige Lucas - looks comfortable on the wings, is very good defensively
Bella Hursey - very adaptable can play most positions, reads the play well and is steady through the mid court
Tiyana Ransom - a quiet achiever but gives 100% and always manages to influence the game at key moments
Ashlee Coombe - works really hard on tight defence but also backs herself to hunt for the ball when an opportunity arises
Charlotte Grubb - reads the play well in the defence, and always goes for the ball and picks up intercepts, works well with whomever partners her in the defensive circle
With 6 first year players this team is gelling very well and each and every one of them puts in 100% at training and out on court, they are a joy to coach and we are aiming to get the girls into one of the top four spots and have a taste of finals.
STNA Round 9 - 1st Grade - Kingston V Palena
The match of Round 9 in the Division 1 competition was between 2nd placed Kingston Blues and 3rd placed Palena Panthers on show court no. 5 @ the Hobart Netball and Sports Centre.
Experienced umpires Jason Nicholls and Isabella Pace were appointed to this game. Jason Nicholls who is due to move back to Melbourne on Friday due to work commitments, umpired the North West Coast State League games between Burnie and Devon on Friday night in Ulverstone, in both the 19U & Open competitions and then backed up on Saturday afternoon with more games in Round 9 of the STNA, including the Kingston v Palena game in the match of the round in the Premier League competition.
The match ups to start the game were as follows:
Michelle Cowen Goal Shooter Kingston v Lizzie Arnold Goal Keeper Palena
Karen Mitchell Goal Attack v Jennifer Gillam Goal Defence
Emma Wilson Wing Attack v Benita Fordham Wing Defence
Nia Hardy Centre v Zoe Rimmer Centre
Coorinna Burgess Wing Defence v Samantha Brady Wing Attack
Madeline Calder Goal Defence v Shannon Cowen Goal Attack
Jo Gomer Goal Keeper v Kayla Cute Goal Shooter
Sub for Kingston was Casey Adams, with defender Liz McNally unavailable for this game.
3rd placed Palena who are a genuine contender in Div 1 this season, after moving back from the Premier League which they played in last year; won a tight first quarter and led 10-9 at the first change.
Kingston Blues playing Coach Jo Gomer rested herself in the 2nd quarter and brought on Casey Adams to Goal Keeper. Michelle Cowen moved out to WA and Emma Wilson switched to Goal Shooter. Palena extended their lead in the 2nd quarter, being effective again at both ends of the court, scoring 13 goals for the quarter and restricting Kingston for the 2nd quarter in succession to only 9 goals for the quarter to lead 23-18 at the half-time interval. At one stage during the quarter Palena got out to an 8 goal lead, but Kingston fought back late in the quarter to stay in the contest.
Jo Gomer returned to the court to Goal Defence for the vital third quarter, Maddie Calder moved out to Wing Defence and Coorrina Burgess was rested. The defending champions Kingston Blues showed their class in the 3rd quarter scoring 15 goals for the quarter, with 2016 Premier League Premiership Goal Attack Karen MacLean scoring 10 goals for the quarter, working well in combination with last year’s Premiership Div 1 GA Emma Wilson. Michelle Cowen’s feeding of the ball into the goalies was a highlight of the quarter, while Nia Hardy impressed in the vital Centre position. Kingston defenders Maddie Calder, Jo Gomer and Casey Adams restricted Palena to only 6 goals for the quarter as the Blues turned a 5 goal half-time deficit into a 4 goal lead at the last change, with the score 33-29.
The last quarter was worth the entry fee, with Palena fighting back and getting within 1 goal of Kingston, with the Centre pass to follow and had an opportunity to tie up the game half way through the quarter, only to be denied by a brilliant piece of defensive work by Kingston playing Coach Jo Gomer, who deflected a pass into the circle, chased the ball down and knocked it back into play to the Blues advantage. Sister Karen MacLean converted at the other end to give the champions a two goal lead. Both teams went goal for goal until a match winning intercept from Kingston Goal Keeper Casey Adams denied Palena any chance of a win as the Blues converted at the other end and finished strongly to win 45-39 in what was a thrilling last quarter, with Jo Gomer and Casey Adams proving to be the match winners for Kingston, producing pieces of individual brilliance which were required as Palena were very impressive right throughout the court and showed that they are genuine contenders this season; which was thought by most experts to be a two way battle between Kingston Blues and OHA Green who have dominated the competition in recent years.
Not sure who was awarded the 3, 2 & 1 votes in this game; but my guess as to the Kingston Blues best 3 players in this game is Jo Gomer 3 votes as she was the match saver for the Blues in the key moment and played 3 good solid quarters at the defensive end as did Casey Adams who in her first game back after a neck injury was outstanding in the Goal Keeper position and was the match winner late in the game, so she gets the 2 votes and Karen MacLean had a very good 2nd half and rose to the occasion when required as she did in the 2016 Premier League Grand Final when she was one of the Blues best players on the court and was a match winner in that game, as she was in this one, scoring 10 goals in both the 3rd and 4th quarters to get the team up for a win.
RACTi League Round 6 - 19u - Kingston V OHA
The Blues round 6 home game against OHA in the State League 19U competition was a crucial game for the defending champions Kingston, who lost their first 3 games, but the new team showed some signs in their last home game that they are starting to gel as a team and did well in patches against Cripps who are on top of the ladder and are expected to play finals this season.
The Blues missed key players Jess Earney and Eloise Fox against Cripps; but they were both back in the team for the vital 7th v 8th Friday night game against OHA; although the home team were missing tall 2017 Premiership defender Hannah Steinhauser due to shin splints and Ella Visser who was also out for this game due to a school camp. Blues Co Coaches Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon brought in a handy replacement in 2016/17 Premiership player Gabriella Lee.
Umpires for the game were Jason Nicholls and Lauren Gilmour. Jason is about to more back to Victoria and will be a big loss for the STNA umpiring panel. Hannah Donoghue was the Emergency umpire and she officiated in the Open game which followed, with her father Ray.
The match ups to start the game were as follows:
Jessica Earney GS Kingston v Eve Downward GK OHA
Lucy Street GA v Hollie Barwick GD
Georgia Jones WA v Kayla McKeown WD
Isabelle Burden C v Indy Turner C
Brigitte Clack WD v Grace Walker WA
Abby Burnett GD v Marahn Aitken GA
Gabriella Lee GK v Annie Cordwell GS
With a lot at stake, both teams showed some signs of nerves early in the game and as a result there were plenty of turnovers in the quarter and missed shots. Kingston looked likely to create some scoreboard damage; but it did not eventuate, so full credit to OHA’s defenders Eve Downward, Hollie Barwick and Kayla McKeown who did well to restrict Kingston to only 9 goals for the quarter as the home team led 9-7 at the 1st change.
In the 2nd quarter the Kingston team came out firing and executed their passes a little more safely and that resulted in plenty of scoring opportunities for goalies Jess Earney and Lucy Street, who found the range in this quarter and were very effective at the attacking end. With 6 minutes left in the quarter OHA coach Kirya Slater injected ex Kingston and Stinga’s 17U player Ebony Coulson into the game into the Centre position, as the Blues were out to what was to match-winning lead. Jess Earney scored 10 goals for the quarter from 11 attempts and she teamed well with Lucy Street who scored 8 goals for the quarter. This was the Blues best quarter for the season to date, with all 7 players on the court having an influence on the game. Quick Centre player Isabelle Burden and TNL 19U 2017 All Star WA Georgia Jones fed the ball well into the goalies, while at the other end of the court Gabi Lee, Abby Burnett and Brigitte Clack all showed their class and defensive skills, as they also did in the first quarter.
Eloise Fox came on for the home team at Wing Attack, with Georgia Jones rested in the 3rd quarter, which proved to be a high scoring shootout. Lucy Street who was playing well at GA was replaced by Lucy Newton with 6 minutes to go in the quarter. Kingston held their match winning 15 goal lead with the three quarter time score 40-25.
Kingston Coaches Shane Fish and Lisa Wheeldon made some changes in the last quarter; bringing back Georgia Jones to Wing Defence, Brigitte Clack was moved back to Goal Defence and Abby Burnett was rested. Kingston finished strongly in the last quarter, with their young 15 year old goalies Jess Earney and Lucy Newton on target with their shooting; Jess Earney scoring 8 goals from 9 attempts and left handed Lucy Newton converted at 100% accuracy, scoring 6 goals from 6 attempts; as the Blues extended the margin to win 54-36.
Full credit to OHA who matched Kingston in the third quarter and were very competitive in the first and last quarters. This game was won in the 2nd quarter when the home team scored 18 goals to 5, which proved to be the decisive quarter in the game.
Player of the Match was Kingston’s new recruit Isabelle Burden, who played 4 quarters in the Centre position and fed the Blues goalies with plenty of opportunities to score. Burden worked hard at the offensive and defensive ends of the court; is one of the quickest and most exciting players in the competition and is starting to run into form after 4 games and the Blues need the young lightning quick 16 year old Centre player to continue to work hard and to improve her game as the season goes on; as she is a key player in the team, taking the place of last year’s Captain and TNL All Star Centre Sarah Scott.
Perhaps the highlight of the game was the return to the court of back to back Premiership defender Gabi Lee. The tall athletic TNL All Star Goal Defence player from 2016 and State 17U player in 2017 led the way at the defensive end and teamed well with skillful left handers Abby Burnett and Brigitte Clack; with all three proving to be match winners for the Blues in the first half.
Kingston’s next game is against Arrows on Friday night at the Hobart Netball & Sports Centre on the No. 1 court, in what will be a big game and a replay of last year’s Grand Final. The Open game to follow will also be another block buster, with Arrows coming off two consecutive losses and will be hungry to win to hold on to 2nd position on the ladder, while the Kingston Blues will be hoping to upset the defending champions to force their way into the top four.
STNA Round 7 - 15a - Kingston Blue V Cripps
The match of Round 7 in the 15a division was a Wednesday afternoon game on court 8 at 5pm between the top two teams Cripps Waratah and Kingston Blue, with both teams undefeated to date this season.
Cripps were on top of the ladder due to a superior percentage. This game was a replay of last year’s 15a Grand Final in which Cripps were victorious. Both teams have very experienced coaches. Simon Ruddock is the Coach of the Kingston Blue 15a team, after making the switch this season to help develop the next batch of talented young players ready for the State League in the years to come.
Simon coached the Kingston Premier League team from 2015-17, in which time they team won back to back Premierships in 2015 and 2016. Before that Simon coached the Kingston Blues State League Open and 19U teams for a decade, in conjunction with Cripps 15a Coach Aaron Pidgeon, who started his TNL Coaching career with the Kingston Blues and then took up the position of Tasmanian Institute of Sport Coach in 2006/2007, before being appointed Coach of the original Tassie Spirit team which entered the Australian National League in 2008.
Aaron coached the Tassie Spirit team for 6 years and then took over as Cripps State League Open Coach in 2014, when his team came from fourth position to win the Grand Final that season. Netball Tasmania’s CEO now coaches his daughter’s 15a team; so this game had the big name Coaches.
The Kingston Blues players didn’t disappoint their coach as they completed a 4 quarter demolition job on their arch rival, to take top position on the ladder after round 7.
Umpires for the big game were Lauren Sheppard from Kilburn and Taylah Dillon from Huonville.
Scorers for the game were Kelly Gordon from Kingston and Amelia Byers from Cripps. The Kingston Blue team statistician was Angela Cordwell.
The match-ups to start the game were as follows:
Lucy Appleby GS Kingston v Georgia Pyke GK Cripps
Ashlea Turner GA v Alexia Smith GD
Jo Thompson WA v Zoe Wood WD
Leah Polley C v Chantelle Byers C
Brielle Gordon WD v Isla Dorney WA
Keely Brereton GD v Sophie Pidgeon GA
Mimosa Middleton-Miller GK v Amelia McMahon GS
Subs for Kingston were Maddi Cordwell and Hannah Brereton and for Cripps Anita Eberstein and Olivia Read
Kingston Blue Coach Simon Ruddock’s game report is as follows:
A very pleasing opening quarter. Made many turnovers and we were measured in our movement through the court, so that we got shots from most opportunities.
In the second quarter we found their pressure harder to deal with so we didn't get get as many easy shots, but our defensive effort was again very good.
The 3rd quarter was Lucy Appleby's with outstanding movement in the circle and 100% shooting. Cripps were more fluent and had 10 shots.
In the last quarter we increased our defensive pressure and limited their opportunities, while struggling with our shooting percentage.
Overall a great game played at a high standard. Two good teams that would push U17 teams. A lot of future TNL players on the court tonight.
Lucy Appleby - outstanding game as shooter with the 3rd quarter 11/11 a highlight. Her movement along the baseline was a feature.
Ashlea Turner - excellent in both attack and in defence, limiting the drive of the Cripps GD.
Maddi Cordwell - made excellent space for the other goalies and provided an option when needed.
Jo Thompson - provided a real target at WA and her defence in the centre was crucial.
Leah Polley - an excellent attacking CC. Her height around the circle and her feeding was an important weapon.
Brielle Gordon - just a very good player in both attack and defence.
Hannah Brereton - very cool under pressure. Forces the Goalies into error. Drives through the court with calmness.
Keely Brereton - always sees the game 2 passes ahead. Fearless and positive. A leader on the court. Creates turnovers.
Mimosa Miller - best game this year. Provides a contest and is starting to make intercepts.
SNTA Round 4 - 13c - Kingston Aqua V Cripps
The match of Round 4 in the 13C competition was the game between Kingston Aqua and Cripps Waratah who were both in equal 6th position on the ladder after the first 3 rounds, with Kingston just in front on percentage.
The umpires for the big game were Alissa Bean from Karana and Hannah Roger from Palena.
Official scorers were Nell Baldwin from Kingston and Anita Jakubiszyn from Cripps.
Coaches of the Kingston Blues Aqua team are Ellen Summers and Mia Rowland. Assistant Coach for the day and official statistician was Georgia Summers. The starting line up for the Kingston Aqua team was as follows:
Goal Shooter: Nadine Adler
Goal Attack: Yvette Ambrose
Wing Attack: Mishae Dalco
Centre: Grace Triffitt
Wing Defence: Ella Baldwin
Goal Defence: Niamh Morley
Goal Keeper: Lucy Coe
Reserves: Grace Main and Paige McGuinniss
Kingston started well and with giant Goal Shooter Nadene Adler and quick footed Goal Attack Yvette Ambrose working well together at the attacking end and defenders Ella Baldwin, Naimh Morley and Lucy Coe effective at the defensive end, the Blues led 2-1 at the first change.
The Kingston Aqua team had plenty of firepower on the bench to inject into the game and Coach Ellen Summers brought on tall goalie Grace Main to Goal Shooter and another good athlete Paige McGuinniss to Goal Attack to start the 2nd quarter. Lucy Coe was moved to WD and Kingston's other tall goalie Nadine Adler was switched to GK.
The Kingston team pulled away in the 2nd quarter to lead 7-2 at the half-time break.
Coach Ellen Summers brought on Ella Baldwin into the vital Centre position and Yvette Ambrose who started at Goal Attack was brought on at Goal Defence, with Niamh Morley switched back to Goal Keeper for the 3rd quarter.
The Blues continued to go up a gear as they piled on 6 goals for the quarter and their mean defenders once again restricted the Cripps team to only 1 goal, as the Kingston team led 13-3 at the last change.
Coach Summers went for speed at the attacking end in the last quarter as Paige McGuinniss moved into the circle to Goal Shooter with Yvette Ambrose switched back to the attacking end again, lining up at Goal Attack and tall shooter Grace Main was moved back to Wing Defence.
Kingston finished the game strongly scoring 5 goals to 2, to win 18-5 and move to fifth place on the ladder after the end of 4 rounds.
Below are some comments on the performance of the players by Coach Ellen Summers.
"Ella Baldwin (C,WD), Mishae Dalco (WA), Grace Triffitt (WA, C) + Lucy Coe (WD) worked together to bring the ball down the court into the attack end.
Paige McGuinniss (GS, GA), Yvette Ambrose (GA) + Grace Main were a strong force in the goal circle putting their bodies on the line to keep possession for their team.
Niamh Morley (GD, GK), Nadene Adler (GK), Lucy Coe (GK) + Yvette Ambrose (GD) worked well in the defensive circle to deflect the ball, gain possession for their team and work the ball effectively down the court.
Highest turnovers: Niamh Morley (GD, GK) - Niamh gained 11 deflections/intercepts according to Assistant Coach and team statistician Georgia Summers.
Highest scorer: Grace Main (GS) scored 7 goals in 2 quarters at GS. Paige McGuinniss also scored 7 goals in her 3 quarters at the offensive end, two at GA and one at GS. Yvette Ambrose scored 4 goals in her two quarters of play at GA."
The win moved the girls up to fifth position on the ladder after 4 rounds and with plenty of skillful athletic players, plus some height at both ends of the court, the Kingston Aqua team look likely to continue to climb up the ladder in the near future with such talent in the team and under the guidance of good, positive and knowledgeable coaching staff