NETBALL at Dimboola has been an important part of Billie Barber’s winters for the best part of 10 years.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
“I just love playing for a small community club,” she said. “Everyone is so tight knit.”
The 21-year-old recently played her 100th A Grade game for the club having debuted as a 16-year-old who was still playing 17 and under netball.
“I’ve enjoyed developing over the course of my five full seasons in A Grade,” she said.
“Putting in the effort to finish off all the hard work done by those further up the court to create turnovers can be so rewarding. I just want to make sure what everyone else does on court doesn’t go to waste.”
While the Roos look likely to miss out on A Grade finals for the first time in a number of seasons, Barber said she had continued to enjoy the tough competition.
“It’s so tight throughout the whole competition,” she said.
“You go into games knowing there is a chance it could go either way – there are no games where you go in expecting to get beaten. Hopefully we can win our last few games, create an upset and sneak into finals still.”
Barber said Jodie Hayes had brought a different approach and some fresh perspectives to the side as coach this season.
“She’s got a real netball brain and I love playing with her,” she said. “Then there are those up-and-coming juniors like Nicole Polycarpou and Ruby Redford.
“It’s great to have so many junior players coming up through the ranks because I think the future of the club is bright.”