Netball
5 June, 2026
Horsham 17s claim Bendigo tournament
The Horsham District under-17s representative netball side had a tournament to remember, going undefeated to win their division at the Central Victoria Netball Association tournament, held at Bendigo on Sunday, May 31.
Both the Wimmera and Horsham District Football Netball Leagues had teams in the under 13s, under 15s and under 17s competitions, with the Wimmera League also having an under 15 development side.
Horsham District under-17s coach Michelle Penrose said the side’s performance was a great reflection of the league’s talent despite various clubs being unable to field teams across all age groups.
“The District’s League is struggling a bit with junior numbers, and there are a lot of clubs now that are missing certain grades within the juniors,” she said.
“So to have the under-17s representative team go all the way at somewhere like Bendigo against bigger associations and win a grand final shows that while we may struggle for numbers, we’re definitely not struggling for talent and opportunity if you choose for your juniors to play in the league.”
After a strong outing at the South West Carnival two weeks prior, the under-17s coach said the team entered the CVNA tournament with confidence.
“The South West Carnival was a great chance to have a really good training run as a team and work out what we needed to work on and where we were excelling,” Penrose said.
“We played Hampden twice during the rounds and then met them in the grand final, and the girls kept with them in the final for the first five minutes.
“Coming into the Bendigo tournament, knowing we had stuck with that strong Hampden team in Portland, it gave the team a lot of confidence.”
Penrose said playing against Wimmera and Bendigo were the two big challenges for the side, and after defeating them both, the side prevailed 13-12 against Bendigo in the grand final.
“We won our first round quite comfortably, but going against the Wimmera in round two, there’s that rivalry between the leagues, and we were very determined since I don't believe they’ve beaten the Wimmera before,” she said.
“The girls managed to get a lead and held it, and that was a massive confidence boost for the girls.
“Our next big challenge was meeting Bendigo in the last round, and we won that by three, so leading into the grand final against them, the team was quite confident again, and we managed to get over the top.”
The coach said the tournament win was a welcome reward for the talented group, most of whom had played together since under-13s.
“A lot of that team have done under 13s, under 15s and under 17s together, so they had bonded and gelled really well as a team with all those years of experience with each other,” Penrose said.
“Seven of the ten players are top age and in their last year in under-17s, so to have that one win against Wimmera, but also take out that grand final and get a medal is huge.
“It reflects where they are at this year, but I just think it's been so rewarding for them, having come from 13s all the way through for a lot of those girls to then get to that point where they've won a grand final this year.”
Among the results from the other teams, the Horsham District under-15s were seventh with a win and two draws, and the under-13s side had five wins from ten games to finish sixth.
The Wimmera League under 17s finished third, as well as the under 15s side, who had six wins, two draws and two one-point losses over the day.
The Wimmera under-15 development side finished fifth in the division, while the under-13s also finished fifth, recording six wins from 10 games.