Youth Girls wrap up another year

By Deanna Hadid

NSW/ACT’s most skilled and talented took on Australia’s best at Deakin Reserve in country Victoria last week.

A team of 30 girls between the ages of 13 and 18 years of age competed against five other state representatives including Vic Metro, Vic Country/Tasmania, South Australia/Northern Territory, Western Australia, Queensland— all chasing the national title.

Vic Metro managed to take home the national title while Western Australia came in second position.

While the girls were unable to win a game against their more experienced counterparts, they displayed significant improvement on past years.

Standout performances included young Illawarra player, Madeleine Collier, who was rewarded for her great week on field with selection in the All-Australian Team.　

At only 14 years of age, Jessica Stramandunoli proved to be a dynamic player making several key tackles on girls twice her size and showing composure beyond her years.

Usually playing the forward position, Eleri Morris played in the backline and was a key defender for the team, rarely missing an opportunity to take a strong mark.

Riverina girls Sophie Gaynor, Claire Donohue, Bethanie Durham and Jodie Hicks all showed that country youth girls are the ones to be watched, demonstrating exceptional skills and determination.

It was the second year for Head Coach Sarah McFarlane and Assistant Coach David Webb who took pleasure in watching the girls perform on field, admitting that the that final scores were not a reflection on the quality of the actual game.

AFL NSW/ACT Female Programs Manager, Libby Sadler is very pleased with the significant improvement of the NSW/ACT girls.

“Youth Girls football is rapidly going from strength to strength,”　she said.

“NSW/ACT is only going to get stronger and our determination will continue to show on the park.”

2013 NSW/ACT Under-18s representative squad

Isabelle Atkinson (Gungahlin)
Nicola Barr (Sydney Harbour)
Rebecca Beeson (Sydney Harbour)
Kirsty Church (Illawarra)
Madeleine Collier (Illawarra)
Claire Donohue (Riverina)
Maddy Duncan (Sydney Harbour)
Bethanie Durham (Riverina)
Rachel Friend (Ainslie)
Sophie Gaynor (Riverina)
Taigen Grenfel (Illawarra)
Jodie Hicks (Riverina)
Brooke Jones (Riverina)
Nicola Kennedy (Illawarra)
Sophie King (Illawarra)
Victoria King (Tuggeranong)
Karina Koeck (Ainslie)
Erina McKinnon (Sydney Harbour)
Eleri Morris (Illawarra)
Eloise O’Brien (Ainslie)
Sophie O’Dea (Belconnen)
Jessica Stramandunoli (Ainslie)
Alexandra Tegg (Southern Power)
Tyiesha Tighe (Sydney Harbour)
Erika Vredenbergt (Gungahlin)
Sophie Welsh (Riverina)
Elenor Wright (Port Macquarie)