CNA State League Wrap Up

The 2021 season came to an unfortunate end with COVID impacting the finals series at the Preliminary final stage. 

CNA had another outstanding season with all four of our teams competing in the finals’ series. Division 1 continued to have another dominant year losing just one game in round two, the only loss in the past three seasons, to finish as Minor Premiers and were victors in their Major Semi-Final, and awaiting an opponent for the Grand Final. In a year that saw four new debutants the team continues to build and challenge each other to be the benchmark of the ACT competition. Whilst the abandonment of the season leaves us wondering what could have been, the team remains more motivated than ever to come back next year for and achieve the ‘3-peat’ after back to back Premierships in 2019 and 2020. 

For our Men’s team 2021 brought a new coach Lauren Grimes, and several player changes from 2020. We had a challenging start to the season and the team lost a few matches early whilst new combinations formed, and the team learned how to play together. With every week we adapted and grew and finished the second round of matches without defeat, charging towards the finals series starting to play our best netball.  Whilst we finished the regular rounds in third due to for and against, we were no doubt back into a position to defend the 2020 premiership, and looking forward to taking on Minor Premiers BNA in the Prelim Final. Whilst the season was cut short, we couldn’t be prouder of the resilience and determination of this team and can’t wait to see where they can continue to grow in 2022.

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For Division 2 our team we had a new coach Anne McGilvray step up from U19s, along with six new players into the Division 2 environment. The team had a fantastic season overall, including a rollercoaster of ups and downs but built across the competition to finish the season in second place. The final few weeks were impacted with a range of injuries that required late team changes and adjustments. Whilst the team lost the major semi-final to BNA, we were excited to see what a Prelim Final, and prospective Grand Final would bring with more players back available. The 2022 season looks bright for our Squad, who will challenge for another premiership whilst providing a vital learning environment and feeder program for Division one. 

Our 19s team also had a fantastic season in a very even competition. With some consistent performances across the year, this young team finished the season Minor Premiers. More important that that result however has been the learning and adapting to what performing in a state league program means, and testing themselves in a squad training environment alongside experienced senior athletes, both female and male. They have learnt new netball skills and strategies, training and life habits, new friendships and having fun along the way. Lead by the talented Coach Lauren George who returned to coaching from playing this season, we are excited to see where these individuals take their netball, and one thing is for certain the future program of CNA looks very bright if this team is any indication. 

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A huge thank you to our coaches for their leadership and support this year, and to our Technical Director Matt Hills for his ongoing work and support. Thank you also to our Scorers Helen, Sue, Katherine, and Primary Carer Mel, who were at netball every Friday for often all three timeslots. Also thank you to our Managers, Bron, Jas, and Steph for all your work and support, and to our Senior Rep Convenor and Div 1 Manager Maisie, for all your work in the lead up and during the season. 

Whilst the season didn’t end the way we would have liked, for us it was very successful and our measures are not about Premierships or winning on court, but the journey, development and community we contribute to individually and collectively. And I as head coach couldn’t be prouder to lead such an outstanding program – bring on season 2022!