Kim Green won the battle of the Sutherland Shire juniors in the opening round of the new Super Netball league on Saturday night.
Green’s Giants Netball downed Abbey McCulloch’s NSW Swifts 58-53 at Sydney Olympic Park in the first match of the new national competition.
Another Sutherland junior, Erin Bell, led her Adelaide Thunderbirds to a thrilling 56-51 win over West Coast Fever.
It was a proud day for netball in the shire, with Green, McCulloch and Bell all leading their new franchises in the inaugural round.
The young Swifts side had been written off by many prior to the season but they led for the majority of the match only to be over-run by the Giants late in the fourth quarter.
Swifts head coach Rob Wright was full of praise for his young charges.
“I genuinely think that we’ll get better every week and so I’m really pleased with our performance today,” he said.
“We’re obviously light on experience and so every opportunity we get to come up against really classy players we’re just going to learn a whole lot.
“Sarah Klau was a deserving MVP in my eyes. She played a fantastic game, especially considering she’s only played eight games in her career. Maddy Proud also did a terrific job in the middle against an international and Sam Wallace… Sam is a star, she has a really bright future ahead of her.”
Wright said the Giants’ experience got them over the line.
“In some key moments I felt [the Giants] were able to deal with the pressure better than we did but you know, we will learn from those and it will only make us better,” he said.
“I’m really excited about the weeks ahead.”
McCulloch’s Swifts host Bell’s Thunderbirds on Saturday as part of a Sydney double header, with the Giants hosting the West Coast Fever.
