“It’s cool to know that we’ve won four times and to follow on the legacy and history that New Zealand’s had in the Interstate.
“Hopefully, from this opportunity it can grow into bigger things between Golf New Zealand and Golf Australia.”
It’s the first time the Kiwis have featured in the girls’ event, which dates back to 1977, lifting the trophy on debut, while the eight-player team secured the overall title in the fifth edition of the combined event.
Teresa Wang remained undefeated with five wins and a draw, with her most important victory coming against Victoria’s Amelia Harris in the final round to help seal the girls’ trophy.
It was a timely rematch after Wang had led last week’s Australian Junior Amateur by four shots heading into the final round, before Harris overtook her to claim the title.
“I’m very happy and I’m really proud of all our teammates,” Wang said.
“I was pretty nervous this morning because of what happened last week, but it feels good to get the win this time.
“It’s a very fun and really good learning experience watching other people from the different states in Australia play.”
New Zealand’s inclusion has lifted the standard of junior team match play, with their strong development programme providing high-level opposition, raising standards for Australian players and offering earlier exposure to international competition.
In the final round, Victoria posed New Zealand’s toughest challenge, handing them their first draw of the week to finish runner-up, while Western Australia’s 6.5-1.5 win over South Australia saw them finish third on countback of individual matches after finishing level on points with Victoria.
Three Kiwis went through undefeated, with Wang and Amy Tang winning five and halving one, while Ricky Kang extraordinarily won all seven matches without a rest.
