Live stream: North Queensland girls eye success at Basketball Australia Under-18’s National Championships

A dynamic pair is looking to continue the legacy of older relatives and lead a North Queensland side’s quest to ‘punch people in the face’ at the U18 National Championships. Watch them LIVE here.

For the past two years, North Queensland’s U18 girls team was spearheaded by Monique Bobongie and Teyahna Bond.

But with the pair having graduated to the U20s, the torch has been passed to generation next.

And in Monique’s cousin Cheyenne and Teyahna’s sister Taryn, a pair of fitting recipients lie in wait.

The North Queensland girls are set to tip off their 2024 campaign on Sunday in a much-anticipated showdown with South Australia Metro, with all matches from the U18 National Championships available to watch LIVE and EXCLUSIVE on KommunityTV.

Check out the LIVE STREAM schedule below.

“To now get to see that next talent coming through, it’s really cool,” said North Queensland coach James Rapinett, who has led the side for more than half a decade.

Cheyenne Bobongie.

“Taryn and Cheyenne are both super dynamic athletes, but are obviously their own players, so I think they’ll be super exciting to watch.”

The shoes left for Taryn and Cheyenne to fill are substantial, with Teyahna and Monique having both gone on to represent Australia’s under-17s.

“Those two girls were an absolute pleasure to coach and are off doing great things,” said Rapinett.

“Their impact on our group over the past few years, you can’t really measure it, they were extremely valuable and great people.”

Rapinett acknowledged the rarity of having a pair of relatives succeed such a talented duo.

“It’s probably pretty unique, it’s fun to be a part of,” he said.

Two years ago in the under-16s, the group Rapinett has inherited finished in the bottom half of the table at nationals.

It means expectations are lowered, with freedom set to be handed to the players in abundance.

“Our goal with this group is to punch a few people in the face, make a quarter final and shake things up, who knows what could happen from there.

“The (group has) gotten a lot better and improved significantly from that under-16s cycle, so who knows what could happen.

“I’m pretty excited to see what we can do.”

Far North Queensland basketballer Taryn Bond.

Rapinett also noted the difficulties that come with a region as vast as North Queensland.

While the group is afforded 12 training sessions in the lead-up to the tournament, the sessions are lumped into four camps.

“By the time we get to session three it’s sometimes pushing the proverbial uphill,” he said.

“People are tired and have been on the road all day.”

But don’t expect it to worry them.

“We don’t make excuses, we just get on with it and it is what it is,” said Rapinett.

“That’s the north trademark right, we have that chip on our shoulder and nobody ever backs us.

“We’ll embrace that and give it a crack next week.”