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In a spectacular culmination to the netball season, Wellington’s U19 and U16 squads displayed outstanding prowess at the national finals, clinching 3rd and 5th positions respectively among 1500 schools nationwide. The achievement underscores the dedication and hard work demonstrated by both teams throughout the season, affirming their status as formidable competitors in the sport.
The U19 squad has been to three national finals and in previous years narrowly missed out on a medal position. With many members of this team being in their final year at the school, it was very fitting for them to achieve their much-deserved medal place. They came out fighting from the very first match, determined to leave everything on the court.
Scarlett Williams, Head of Netball Development, talks about a few memorable moments from the tournament and highlights why our U19 squad has been so instrumental in the success of the season:
“The opening match pitted us against North London Collegiate School, and those initial 7 minutes showcased some of our finest netball of the tournament. The way the girls executed everything we had gone through in training was faultless, making it hard for us as coaches to add much at halftime. We went on to win our first two games comfortably. Lydia came on in game two and did a brilliant job in WD, closing down the WA’s attacking drives to the circle. The third match proved a little more challenging and ended in a draw. Macy and Jaz took a few unbelievable turnovers in this match and gave us a few more opportunities at goal, that we needed to get this draw. The girls went on to play Millfield and beat them 9-5! Scarlett took some great overhead turnovers in this match with Saffy landing some extremely accurate feeds into Charlotte. Saskia played so well outside the shooting circle to pull the GD out of the game and Charlotte’s holds proved too much for Millfield to defend. Throughout Amelie’s attacking availability and defence through court opened up the attack and gave us numerous opportunities to convert off more possession. After lunch, Annabel returned to the court and in the first 3 minutes, she turned over 3 balls, making such a great impact! The girls ended up losing one of their group games and placed 2nd in their pool meaning they played Hartpury College, the top of the other pool. Although a well-contested match, Hartpury came out to win the match putting us in the 3rd/4th playoff. The girls quickly realised they had everything still to play for and played some great netball to win the game taking 3rd place with a score of 12-13. It definitely kept us on the edge of our seats. Emily came on in this very tense game as WD and was the link between our attack and defence through the court; she played so well through the middle which had proven tough for us in the earlier part of the day. Well done as well to Jaz who played WA out of position in this game. Overall, the girls played some of the best netball we have seen them play as a squad, to come out with a medal was everything they deserved. We went home as very proud coaches. All the girls were an absolute asset to the school.”
“We wanted to specifically highlight the Upper Sixth who are leaving the netball programme this season as their time at Wellington comes to an end this summer. They have all been a huge credit to the school and have shown outstanding commitment to the program. Here are just a few words about why they have been so special to us:
Scarlett made the Storm U21 team this season for the first time, having previously tried at other age groups. She is the perfect example in showing that with consistent hard work and commitment, you can achieve great things. Scarlett also led as our 1st team captain this year and throughout, even through injury, has been a hugely committed and encouraging leader and teammate. She has a positive and inspiring attitude towards all sessions and considers absolutely everyone in the team, a true leader. Scarlett not only a leader to her team but a leader on the court and has made us proud by how she has dictated the circle this season.
Saskia has come through both the U17 and U19 Storm squads. What is so unique about Saskia is her willingness to train hard and improve. She is the first to ask for additional sessions and feedback, never missing an opportunity to work on something she feels needs some time. She is driven and determined to be the best player she can be and this attitude is no doubt why she has been so successful in her netball and will continue to be in the future! Saskia has built on tactics we have focused on this season and her execution of these over the weekend made us coaches very proud.
Charlotte is a part of the U19 storm squad this season. Charlotte is the person that always comes to training with a smile on her face, her energy lifts the whole team and all her reasons she loves the squad brings everyone to tears. She has made such amazing progress on holding in the circle making it impossible for any defender to intercept or even get a single rebound. Her confidence has grown this season, and it has made such an amazing difference to her game, we are looking forward to hearing what is to come.
Annabel has balanced head of college alongside all her netball and never let one commitment affect the other. She always comes to additional sessions keen to learn and build on her skills. Annabel always works hard in absolutely everything she does. She puts her team first and never wants to let anyone down, the best example of this was during the national finals when she fell very ill but still came to support her team. The few quarters she felt well enough to play she gave it her absolute all. She did this for her team and that’s been her attitude and commitment to the squad all season.
Macy – From the first to the last game of the season, Macy has just made the biggest improvement to her defensive game. She never ceases to amaze us being someone who is normally so laid back then suddenly becomes the most focused, competitive and intent person on the court at the blow of a whistle. Always the one to be researching our opponents, Macy absorbs herself in the game well ahead of game day, often letting the coaches know what kind of attacking circle we are playing that day.
Saffy has come on massively this season having been a key starting 7 player within the squad. She takes on all feedback at training and matches and always looks to implement it intentionally in games. She is someone that attended all Wednesday afternoon skills sessions regardless of how much she had going on outside of netball and is always going that bit further to improve and develop her game. Her speed and feeding into the circle have taken the defence of other teams out of the game on numerous occasions. Her attitude and commitment to her teammates are assets to any team.
Girls, you have made such a huge mark on Wellington netball, and you will be extremely missed next season. In the meantime, let’s get into some summer pre-season and get you ready for the next step in your netball careers!”
Well done to all the netballers this season, we can’t wait to get going again after the summer term!
