TWO local teams achieved the ultimate success at the Chisholm Earthmoving Junior Invitational last weekend.
The 13th edition of the Swan Hill Basketball Association’s annual event was the biggest yet, with the Swan Hill Flyers’ Under 14s and Under 12s claiming exciting grand final wins to kick off a big summer on courts locally and elsewhere.
Other strong local results saw the Under 14 boys and Under 18 girls finish runners-up in their groups.
Under 14s team manager Merryn Stacey said the side, coached by Danny Gardner, had been “very happy” after winning their first tournament together.
“It was the first tournament of the season, too, so it was a nice one to win,” she said.
After getting out to an early lead in the first half of the premiership decider, the Flyers found their Wangaratta opponents coming back after the main break, Stacey said.
She said the Flyers were able to lock down the game and hold on, displaying characteristics that had been central themes throughout the two-day tournament.
“Probably their defence was the key but they all played really well as a team,” Stacey said.
With the age profile set to see the team split up next season the time was right to test the girls at the next level, the team manager said.
“There’s three top-age and five bottom-age girls, so hopefully they’ll come together every second year,” Stacey said.
“But we need to challenge them now by sending them up to Division 1… They will go okay; they probably won’t beat your Bendigos and those teams but they should be competitive.”
Under 12s coach Kristie Bennett said the relatively inexperienced side had impressed beyond expectations.
“We had only really put them together a couple of weeks before the tournament, so they did really well,” she said.
“We had six girls who were playing squad for the first time, so they were really excited.”
Bennett said the side had taken local organisers by surprise with their development.
“They improved every time they played,” she said.
The Flyers took the lead early in the grand final against Echuca but, like the Under 14s, found their opponents fighting back into the game.
“With a minute and a half to go the scores were even and we ended up winning by four, so it was pretty exciting,” Bennett said.
