IT was a successful weekend for seven Hamilton Kangaroos netballers who represented the Hampden Football Netball League (HFNL) at the Western Zone Junior Netball Championships in Ballarat on Sunday.

Maddox Ryan, Saskia Gould (Under-15), Molly Sevior (Under-15 Reserve), Leni Robertson, Lexi Thomas (Under-13), Ava Kinnealy and Elsie Brown (Under-13 Reserve) all competed on the day with great success.

Ryan, Gould, Robertson and Thomas will advance to the state finals in Melbourne over the coming weeks and look to continue their success.

Hamilton Kangaroos’ Under-13 coach, Nat O’Dea was asked to coach the Hampden Under-13 reserve side which went undefeated and said all of the local girls performed very well on the day.

“Having seven girls being selected at league level is an amazing achievement,” she said.

“Hampden is such a strong league so to see our Kangaroo girls playing so well, learning and growing in confidence is so exciting.”

The seven Roos representatives were on fire as the Under-15, Under-13 and Under-13 reserve team all won the grand final defeating Ballarat in each section – while the Under-15 reserve team fell just three goals short in the big game.

O’Dea added that the girls continued to grow in confidence throughout the day and they would be able to bring their knowledge back to the local level.

“The Western Zone Champs is a great day, the experience alone is enormous for the girls and their netball,” she said.

“Playing against other leagues and stepping up to the higher standard has so many benefits.”

From a coaching perspective, O’Dea said taking on the reigns of a junior rep team was an enjoyable experience and something she would definitely do again in the future.

“It was my first time being involved, and I loved it, I had a great day with my team of champions,” she said.

“Such a great bunch to coach, they were always happy and smiling, loving the experience … their individual improvements were enormous.”

Ryan and Gould were strong performers for the Under-15 Hampden side on the way to winning the grand final.

The pair have made the jump into the Hamilton Kangaroos Open netball side in 2024 which has been invaluable for their experience.

Gould has regularly been leading the scoring at the top level so being able to play against girls her age and size allowed her to have a big day out in the goal shooter position.

While Ryan locked down on opponents at the championships playing in the wing defence position, lots of the attacking chains started from her in the backcourt.

Sevior was an integral part of the Under-15 reserve team as she dominated under the ring shooting well to help push her side all the way to the grand final.

Despite falling short at the final hurdle, the youngster has been gaining plenty of experience playing some senior netball with the Roos in Division 2 and 3.

This has seen her grow in confidence throughout the season having scored 68 goals in her five Division 2 games.

O’Dea said the trio were all talent identified and if successful, could potentially join the Western Zone Netball Academy.

“All of the girls that competed in the Under-15s are looked at by three independent Netball Victoria TID (talent identification) scouts,” she said.

“The girls are then emailed in 2-3 weeks to inform them as to whether they are offered a spot in the academy.”

In the Under-13s, Robertson and Thomas switched positions throughout the day both spending time in the midcourt for the Hampden side.

While Brown (goalkeeper) and Kinnealy (goal attack/goal shooter) provided some spark for the reserve team and were incredibly important at each end.

All four young guns have been plying their trade in a stacked team for the Hamilton Kangaroos this season helping them to be premiership contenders.

They are regularly among the best players and a key reason as to why the side sits second with a 7-1 season record.