IT WILL take something to drag Oldham Netball Club’s under-14 players down from cloud nine after they were crowned national champions.
The squad is celebrating after seeing off competition at Sheffield’s English Institute of Sport on Saturday, May 17 and Sunday, May 18.
It is the eighth time the club has won the national title at that age group and it was a proud moment for coach Pam Hazelton, who was assisted by Jackie Reid and Lindsay Jones, with Anthony Wood-Davis team manager.
In phase one, Oldham defeated London’s AP Saints and Hartlepool’s Oaksway before seeing off Bromsgrove’s Ryland and Brighton’s Five Ways in phase two.
Phase three saw victories over Middlesbrough’s Grangetown and Maidenhead’s Eagles before the grand final against local opposition, Kingsway Power, who are based between Cheadle Hulme and Alderley Edge.
The two are familiar with each other as Oldham recently lost to them in the North West Regional Final
But in what was described as a ‘tight’ contest, Pam’s side ran away in the last quarter to take a 24-18 victory.
“The players were sensational,” said the victorious coach about her entire squad – Nicole Ogbonnaya, Bea Johnson, Ava Fenn, Lola Newton, Lilly Wood-Davis, Juliette Verstraelen , Lily-May Carlin, Erin Stone, Lucy Taylor, Annabel Lama, Daisy Porter, Sophia Allmand and Eva McMurray.
“They trained like trojans in the weeks leading up to the finals and it paid off.
“They showed such composure in the last quarter of the final, calmly delivering the ball to the shooters who slotted every shot.
“I couldn’t be prouder, they were amazing.”
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