THE FIRST Netball Wanganui senior team to test itself at national level in 15 years will have to hit the hard court running this morning at the Lion Foundation National Championships in Wellington.
Coached by Lisa Murphy, Wanganui will play representative teams from other centres after Netball NZ decided to change the format this season, away from a competition involving regional squads selected from the best domestic players from five zones.
The Wanganui side was selected after the second annual Vanda Buttars Memorial Tournament between Northern, Southern and Metropolitan, along with a separate invitational trial of 21 players.
Manager Donna Jeffery said Murphy was pleased with how the squad had come together over their short preparation time of five weeks. "The team knows this tournament is a huge step up from the Wanganui Premier 1 club netball competition, but are looking forward to the challenge and the potential to play against Silver Ferns and up-and-coming stars of today."
Of the original 12 players named, East Club's Victoria Anstis and Marist's Mikayla Pihema-Taiaroa had to pull out due to school and work commitments, with Ruapehu's Loni Martin joining the team.