Memorable grand final day for Maccabi Netball

WITH bright sunshine over Heffron Park, a buzzy atmosphere, enthusiastic cheers from throngs of supporters on the sidelines all morning and top quality netball happening on each court, last Saturday’s 2024 Randwick Netball Association grand finals were the icing on the cake of another memorable season. And five Maccabi NSW Netball Club teams were in the thick of the action, with three going on to win premierships. The day started with the Maccabi White under-10 division 3 side continuing their giant-killing run in the finals series with a dominant grand final triumph against first-placed Mascot, with a near flawless display by every player on the court. This team, coached by Sai, finished in third place at the end of the 14-round regular season and only got better since. They’d swept aside the Double Bay Diamonds 13-6 in an elimination semi-final two weeks ago, then breezed past KRB 15-5 in a preliminary final and backed up last Saturday with their best game of the season, proving way too good for Mascot, cruising to a 15-1 victory. The Jewish club’s next Maccabi premiership title was earned in under-12 division 6 by Maccabi White, who’d placed second on the ladder and earned the previous weekend off after winning a major semi-final over top-placed Rose Bay Magic Black by 23-15. Facing them again in the grand final, they won by 27-18 in the end, but were made to work very hard in the first three quarters to get on top. Trailing by 11-12 after two quarters, coach Vanessa Abrahams’ message to her troops was: “If you want the win, fight for it” – and that was all the encouragement they needed. By the end of the third quarter, Maccabi White led 18-14 and increased their winning margin to nine by full-time. “This Maccabi White team came from the Bondi Phoenix last season and needed a few games to settle in and then just got better as the season progressed,” Abrahams said. “When we were down by one point at half-time, we made some positional changes to give the opposition a few things to think about, and combined with this team’s determination and teamwork, they went on to win. “In a team performance, Amber Isaacs was phenomenal in attack and Ashley Jackson was brilliant in defence.” The team’s captain, Madison Cohen, said, “Lots of teamwork, staying positive even when things weren’t going our way and not making many errors helped us to victory and we’re so happy.” The Maccabi Blue team ended an already memorable day for the club on a high, when the ladder leaders won the under-13 division 3 decider by 19-14 over second-placed Mascot. Just a fortnight prior, Maccabi Blue had struggled against Mascot in a major semi-final, which they won, but only by 14-13. With the benefit of learning from that semi and a week off to focus on training, the team looked sharp and confident in the decider and led from start to finish. Delighted captain Jade Placks said, “Our focus was to maintain possession, really go for it in each contest for the ball and defend well for the whole game, right until the end. “We were able to do that together as a team and we’d trained well all season, so we feel very excited to win the comp.” In the under-11 division 3 decider, Maccabi White – who had won the minor premiership and a major semi-final by 13-9 over Rose Bay Magic White – couldn’t quite produce the goods against an in-form St Catherine’s School side, losing 13-22. The team’s manager, Tova Archie, said they fought hard until the end and kept encouraging each other. “I’m so proud of these girls, both on and off the field,” she said. And in the under-14 division 4 grand final, second-placed Maccabi Blue lost 20-34 to first-placed Rose Bay Magic Blue, who were the dominant team all season in that division. They’d only trailed by five points at half-time, but their opponents – who’d beaten them by 9-20 in a major semi-final – found an extra gear to close out comfortable winners. It was still a great season for the U14 Maccabi Blue team, who’d won the previous Saturday’s preliminary final by 35-9 over Saints Blue The team’s captain, Daniella Golan, said, “It was definitely a rush to make it to, and play in, a grand final. “While the outcome was disappointing, it was a good game played by us against a very good side and we were able to score more points against them than we did in the semis.” Maccabi NSW Netball Club president Michelle Samuel told The AJN that nine of the club’s junior teams – more than half of their teams in this year’s Randwick season – made it to the finals series, “which is a terrific achievement and we are super proud of all of them”. “And to have five teams in the grand finals and three premierships, makes this one of our best years in the Randwick competition in recent times. “It’s a credit to all the teams, the players, the coaches and team managers.” Samuel said season 2024 has also been a significant one for the club as a whole, “as we’ve grown by about 50 per cent this year, across the board”. Maccabi fielded seven Net Set Go (U8 and U9) sides, had 25 participants in the club’s U7 development program, three women’s teams and more than a dozen junior and intermediate teams. The club also had several players selected in mid-season representative teams, mostly for Randwick. “We’re continuing to grow and expand and to focus on further developing our players, coaches, umpires and training programs.” The club will host its annual presentation day on September 29.

Source AJN