Athletes survive first phase of netball trials

Talent-identified netballers from the Darling Downs Regional Netball Academy, including Warwick’s Josie McCosker, have survived the first phase of State Under 17 and Under 19 trials held at Logan Metro Indoor Sports Centre recently.
They formed part of a 144-strong group of athletes from, in total, 12 Netball Queensland Regional Academies to be put through their paces on the Friday, swapping their Academy shirts for Netball Queensland singlets before slotting randomly into teams.
These teams were tested in a number of sessions, with the help of specialist coaches from across Australia, before participating in match-play trials on the Saturday and Sunday. Players were selected as part of the Regional Academy program following trials earlier this year. Throughout the year, these same athletes have taken part in specialist training sessions and development programs aimed at improving their netball skills and preparing them for this Regional Academy Screening and Development weekend.Netball Queensland Athlete Development Officer Sheree Smith said the players made the most of their opportunity to impress.
“We were blown away by the standard of play and commitment shown by the athletes,” Smith said.
“Queensland’s talent pool for the 2013 National Championships is strong and selectors will have a hard time narrowing it down.”
The Netball Queensland Regional Academy program, in its fifth year, provides a development pathway for skilled young athletes, as well as coaches, umpires and administrators, and serves as a screening phase for Queensland under 17 and 19 teams for 2013.
Next week, thirty players from each age group will be invited to a Phase Two underage state selection camp to be held on December 1 and 2 before final selections for the Queensland under 17 and 19 teams are made on January 26 and 27, 2013.The 2013 National Championships will run from 7-13 April in Darwin.