Strong performance from Katanning Netball Association at the Great Southern Regional Championships in Albany

Katanning Netball Association had a successful 2022 Great Southern Regional Championships in Albany, winning the open division two title. The annual event involved an amazing three-day tournament and teams from all over the Great Southern including Narrogin, Esperance, Denmark, Katanning, Kojonup, Ongerup and Narrikup joined Albany’s many teams this year. KNA development officer Davina Davies worked hard once again to get the association involved in the big tournament held at Albany Leisure and Aquatic Centre. KNA sent two teams down south — an under-14 team and an open division two squad. The under-14s were coached by Kelly Holzknecht and with a lot of training and hard work, these girls managed to come home with a couple of impressive wins under their belt. In five games, they were defeated by Esperance 24-30 and Albany 37-21. The resilient squad managed to come back with two wins, defeating Narrogin 2, 14-11, while also notching a victory against Albany under-13s 36-7. In the finals round, Katanning faced off against Narrogin again and ran out winners 19-15. These young girls played with such pride and joy and the weekly training sessions definitely brought the team together. They developed more and more with each game over the weekend and the effort on display was amazing. Katanning’s open division two team brought home the gold for the association for the third year in a row. Coached by Alyce Caldwell, the team came together from a mixture of Katanning and Kojonup players that formed a strong unit. With two great games on Saturday, they won emphatically against Ongerup 53-21 and Esperance Masters 57-14. On Sunday, Katanning squared off against Kojonup in a tough match, with both teams fighting desperately for a win. However Katanning rallied to claim a third win, 36-21. The only sour note was a Katanning player breaking her ankle. Katanning met Kojonup 2 once again in the grand final. Another Katanning player injured her ankle and there were bodies on the ground each quarter in an intense affair. However Katanning persevered to finish with a thrilling eight-goal win to secure the title, 36-28. The 2023 Great Southern Regional Championships will be held in Esperance. Netball will resume this Saturday at the Katanning Leisure Centre.