During the recent school holidays our 9A and 10A Netball teams travelled to Christchurch to compete in the annual Junior South Island tournament.

This year it was held at the new Nga Puna Wai centre, which has 10 indoor netball courts, which were freezing! It was definitely warmer outside in the sunshine! It was also the first time the tournament had changed its format - extending it from 3 to 4 days, which is a big commitment in the school holidays. Both teams had a really good time away, they are a great bunch of girls who represented our school well. Unfortunately they had some tough games in their first pools against some very good teams - St Hilda’s and Columba College. Some of these teams are coached by ex- Silver Ferns! 

The 9As had some great wins over the tournament. They beat Hillmorton 29-12 and Roncalli. The 9As ended up playing off for the 21st - 24th placing. They just lost 21-19 to Avonside to finish in 24th place. They had beaten Avonside 26-23 on the Monday though! Fatigue had unfortunately set in by the last day! They were the highest-ranked South Canterbury team in the 9A grade (all of the South Canterbury Year 9 teams ended up in the bottom 16) so that’s a great accomplishment. 

The 10As had some very tough games, although finished strongly. They only just lost to Waitaki Girls on the Wednesday then followed it up that afternoon with an impressive 29-6 win over Logan Park. The 10As had 2 great wins on the final day, beating Geraldine 27-18 and Rolleston 31-21 to finish in 25th spot. The 10As also got a Sportmanship Award, which they were very excited about! They were nominated by their umpires who had umpired them over the course of the tournament. 

A big thanks to 10A coach and managers - Kerie Elder, Melissa Ward and Bianca Harbutt and the 9A coach and managers - Di Walsh, Nicky Severinsen and Angela Habraken. Also thanks must go to Sabriah Fitzgerald and Renee Habraken for going as the team umpires. Thank you all for giving up your time and volunteering to ensure the girls had a successful tournament.