THREE Wimmera netballers have earned their place in under-age Netball Victoria squads after a series of exhaustive trials.
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Sacha McDonald has continued to progress on a pathway to the top level by being selected as a bottom-age player in the 19 and under tier one squad.
“It’s always very humbling to get picked as a bottom-age player,” she said. “There is a lot of hard work to come though.”
Maggie Caris and Lavinia Fox have also earned their place in 17 and under squads just days after winning gold at the Pacific School Games in the 15 and under Victorian team.
Caris has been selected in the tier one squad while Fox was picked in the tier two squads.
McDonald said she had been tracking their progress in the 15 and under team.
“It’s super exciting to see them get selected in squads as well – I’m sure we’ll all catch up at some point,” McDonald said. “It’s nice to have some more girls from the Wimmera taking part in the program – it’s a big commitment but it’s great to see that other girls are making it happen as well. I think they both definitely have big futures.”
The tier one squads will work towards competing at the national netball championships in Adelaide in April next year.
The tier two squads will be involved in a high-performance program that includes technical, tactical and specialist coaching as well as individually tailored guidance.
McDonald said being on the pathway is really helpful each year.
“It is so exciting because I’ve travelled through the pathway with some of the same girls from the under-12 level who have just been picked again,” she said.
“I’ve been able to make some really good friends – that is one of the best parts of netball and being able to be part of such a strong program. It’s certainly one of the biggest things I love about it.”
For McDonald the selection process involved her automatically moving through to the top-50 due to being a top age 17 and under player this year. There was then five selection trials over a five week period which largely focused on match play at an intense level.
She will train once a week with the squad on top of her other commitments.
“The trainings are always very intense and there are high expectations that come with representing you state,” McDonald said. “At the 19 and under level it starts to get more and more serious but at the same time it is still lots of fun.”