Chelsea Brook flourishes in new role, wins final for Mackay

A subtle change in position and role led to a dominant scoring outburst from a Meteorette, with the forward carrying the team to victory in the quarterfinals.

Cayla George (left), Courtney Virgo, Paris Santacaterina and Skye Rees for the Mackay Meteorettes, August 28, 2021. Picture: Matthew Forrest

A change to the line-up gave the Meteorettes a different look and renewed energy in their first match of the post-season.

With the inclusion of Olympian Cayla George timed with the rise of Skye Rees, Chelsea Brook found herself shifted to the small forward position.

Brook thrived against the smaller bodies, scoring 24 points and grabbing nine rebounds in the win over Sunshine Coast.

She said she was excited to get to play a different role for the side.

“It was really exciting to play a different position and give the team a different look,” she said.

“I think I’ll always naturally leak out to the outside to shoot a bit more, I’d like to have a bit more inside presence against the smaller players though.”

Brook was the top scorer for the team along with Heidi Freeburn, while George struggled finding her rhythm only days out of quarantine after her Olympic duties.

Cayla George for the Mackay Meteorettes in the semi-final win against Sunshine Coast Phoenix. Picture: Matthew Forrest

Meteorettes coach Scott McKenzie said the added versatility Brook offered the squad made his side less predictable.

“She had a cracking night, you could see the advantage we got putting her against the smaller players,” he said.

“Next week that’s probably a bit different because Spartans are the same size, but we’ll see what our scouting report tells us next week.”

The Meteorettes will play Southern Districts in their final next week, with the Spartans undefeated on the season so far.

Originally published as Chelsea Brook flourishes in new role, wins final for Mackay