RECAP: Country Championships
Over the holidays, our under 12 and under 14 teams took the court at the Basketball Victoria Country Championships. Joining them was also a strong contingent of Southern Peninsula referees! Hear about each event and from each team’s coach about their Championship experiences.
U12 Country Championships
Kelly Read, Head Coach of the Under 12.1 Girls said “We started out not knowing what to expect for these first timers (including the coach). With a few big losses we started to pick up our pace and found we had speed on our side, we are short but we are quick!
The girls are such a tight knit group after this tournament and came away runners up in the grand final. It was the best way to get to know their individual strengths and weaknesses but also to mesh them as a team. Can’t wait for next year!!”
The Under 12.1 Boys led by Seb Melhem took to the court across the weekend with a growing team. Over the three days the team developed and bonded together in what was for many, their first year of playing for the Sharks.
The boys went down in a close game against an ever strong Bendigo in the Quarter Finals on the third and last day of the tournament.
U14 Country Championships
U14.1 Girls Head Coach, Peter Chaplin, commented on the team’s weekend saying “After playing three games the U14 girls graded in the Championship Division which saw us play tougher teams who challenged us.
On the court our intensity was generally high and we also started to develop the game toughness we need to continue to improve. We practised fantastic defence, which kept the opposition to low scores compared to the other teams they played.
On Sunday the girls played in the quarter final and had two overtime’s. We scored 16 points in the 7 :40 minutes prior to the final siren and only lost by 1 point.
Off the court it was fantastic to see the friendships grow and develop which will be a great asset to our teamwork and cohesiveness for the season. Many thanks to the parents, and supporters who cheered, and scored.”
Under 14.1 Boys Head Coach, Scott Ramsey, commented on the tournament saying “The boys competed in nine games over three days in Traralgon, starting with four pool matches in the Championship Division on the Friday. We came up against some strong opposition early and learned some valuable lessons that would help us as the tournament unfolded. The team built their tournament game on game and showed improvement each time they took the court to compete and showed real grit and determination in how they played. The standout game was our Quarter Final clash with Hamilton who had beaten us earlier in the tournament with size and power but our group stuck to our game plan and executed perfectly to turn the tables and get an emotion charged victory to send the team into the Semi Finals. Our run would end there with our group coming up against Horsham who were simply too good for us on that occasion.”
“We saw all players make positive contributions across the weekend on both sides of the ball with a couple of standouts being Harper, Jed and Nate’s defensive work along with Jay and Luke Gilberts fast break offense. Ty and Tommy did an excellent job with their splits to the basket and Angus and Luke Ramsey took another step forward in their development within the group.” added Ramsey.
Referees
Over the past weekend, Basketball Victoria Country held the Under 14 Junior Country Championships in Traralgon. Similar to our representative teams that we are able to send to participate in these events, we also have the opportunity to send referees and referee coaches to represent Southern Peninsula Basketball Association.
SPBA Referee Administrator, Axel Goodall, said “These events are an integral part to the referee pathway through country basketball. Similar to the player pathway, referee’s use these events to be selected into events like Southern Cross Challenge, Australia Junior Basketball Country Cup, and other national events. Referees are also fortunate enough to receive referee coaching throughout the entire duration of the tournament, which is extremely beneficial to their development as officials.”
This past weekend, Southern Peninsula sent 5 officials away to Traralgon to represent Southern Peninsula. All officials represented Southern Peninsula exceptionally well and we congratulate them on their achievements.
Murray Sydenham – Referee Coach
Tony Newsome – Referee Coach
Axel Goodall – Referee
Ethan Paul – Referee
Ollie Patterson – Referee
