By ANITA ANDERSON
Noosa Touch had an extremely successful Junior Regional Championships last Saturday.
The championships, held at Caboolture, were hotly contested – both in weather conditions and touch action – with affiliates competing from as far away as Kingaroy to the north and Caboolture to the South.
Our association had seven representative teams in both girls and boys divisions competing in under-10, under-12, under-14 and under-16.
The mighty Sea Eagles secured grand final berths in five of the divisions with the under-12 girls claiming the title of regional champions.
All of our junior players played their hearts out in the sizzling conditions and showed great sportsmanship throughout the day. Words can’t express how proud we are of each and every one of them.
The under-10 girls tasted success in three of their four games – which earned them a spot in the grand final against Caboolture, where they went down in a close encounter by one touchdown.
Great consistent efforts were displayed by Alla, Lilly, Bronte and Mackayla.
The flying wingers Breanna and Jasmine protected the edges and Page, Anna and Jenna did an awesome job playing in their very first carnival.
Noosa is very proud of you all for a job well done.
With only seven players for the entire day, the under-10 boys did it extremely tough but you would not have known it by the courageous effort supplied by all. They pushed their opposition to the final siren and only a couple of touchdowns the difference in their first two games.
Saving the best till last, they finished the day off with a big win against Caboolture.
With the limited number of players, positions went out the window and Ben, Marcellus, Pedro, Dan, Jak, Zac and Nico must have felt like they had run a marathon by the end of the day. For most of the boys it was their first carnival and they can only have benefited from the experience.
The under-12 girls team’s championship performance was based on having fun and enjoying themselves. The girls improved as a team and grew in confidence the further they advanced through the tournament.
They faced Caboolture in the final, and with the scores locked at 3-all at full time the game went into a drop off.
The Noosa girls had to hold fast and defend for the first set of six but were triumphant with just the second touch of the ball scoring the winning touchdown in a length-of-the-field display.
Coach Craig said the girls were an absolute pleasure to coach. Congratulations to Abbi, Brianna, Emily, Georgia, Grace K., Jamaica, Grace V., Jorga, Maddi, Monique and Parker. Marvellous effort and result.
After a long wait and with the heat in full swing, the under-12 boys got their day underway. With two good wins and a hard-fought draw the boys made their way into the grand final before going down to Caboolture. This team is very young, and to finish the day as runners-up was a great achievement.
Quite a number of the boys will get another shot at the under-12 title next year.
Players’ player for the carnival went to Armin and he was well supported by his fellow team-mates in Ben, Curtis, Dan, Ethan, Jaxon, Levi, Liam, Ryan and Zayne.
Training since the Christmas break well and truly paid off for the under-14 girls. They were undefeated through all of the round games and consistently performed planned plays and had a number of touchdowns resulting from a combined team effort. They continued their winning way through the quarter and semi-finals to earn their place in the grand final.
The final result may not have gone their way but the day was a huge success for them. Well done to Lucy, Georgia, Tenay, Giverny, Kalen, Pip, Tiana, Louise, Zoe, Tyla, Bella, India and C Jai. By the time the State Cup rolls around in July these girls will be unstoppable.
The under-14 boys hit the ground running from game one, combining well across the park. As a team they saw the rewards from many long, hot training sessions as their set plays came together and showed results on the scoreboard.
The strong displays by Harry, Hayden, Jack, Jaidyn, Lachlan, Leo, Noah Rueben, Samuel, Taj, Tamatoa, Thomas, Chaance and Will continued throughout the day with the team racking up plenty of wins to set the stage for a grand final berth.
Unfortunately in the big show the bubble burst, and despite some individual heroics – including a length-of-the-field touchdown from a penalty tap – the boys finished the day as worthy runners-up.
The under-16 girls team got off to a good start with a draw and then a win to get their campaign on the road.
Kawana ended their run and were too strong at the semi-final stage.
Ashleigh, Bronte, Danielle, Jaidyn, Jessie, Lexie, Paris Rana, Shae, Steivy and Tahli played strongly all day and should all be proud of their effort.
Some of our under-16 boys playing in a combined team under the Coolum banner also had a successful day taking out their age division against some tough opposition. Well done boys.
Thanks to our coaches and managers Nichole, Ellie, Craig, Caitlyn, Peggsy, Stu, Renee, Jimmy, Scott, Frankie, Jason and Mandy. Your time and effort over the past couple of months is truly appreciated.
A huge thanks to the referees Nicki, Nat, Alisa, Eddie, Cassie and Tex who gave up their day.
Last but not least, thanks to the touch families for playing, officiating and supporting our junior development programs. With your support we can continue to build on our club for a great future.
