Fairholme duo books ticket to Brisbane for Vicki Wilson Championship finals

See the schools from the Downs who advanced to the finals of the Vicki Wilson Championship finals in Brisbane.

Jasmine Steer, Glennie and Portia Pamenter, Downlands. Picture: Nev Madsen.

NETBALL: The region’s Vicki Wilson Championship representatives for 2021 have been determined.

More than 40 school teams descended on Toowoomba for the Darling Downs qualifiers, with the hopes of booking a spot in the Queensland finals in August.

Fairholme College and Downlands College progressed through to the Cup (senior) finals after filling the top two spots.

The double was completed for Fairholme, as they joined St Joseph’s College in the Shield (junior) finals, prompting an overjoyous response from the school.

“We’re ecstatic about the qualification,” Fairholme head of sport and activities Troy Tregaskis said.

“It’s something we’ve done for a few years now, but the pressure is always on to try and repeat that.

“The girls have trained hard for this and the coaches have really worked well with them.”

With a number of short, sharp games held across the day to determine finalists, Tregaskis praised the endurance of the squads to outlast rivals.

“Our girls went through (selection) trials in the first few weeks of term one,” he said.

“Since then we’ve been training and involved in the Wednesday night competition at Glennie, and our juniors in the Toowoomba Netball Association on Saturdays.

“They were short games and the girls held up really well. Their fitness and stamina was on show.”

With two months to prepare for the rest of Queensland, Tregaskis said they will look to keep their form intact.

“It will be a case of hopefully keeping that momentum going,” he said.

“It’s been a team effort so far. It relies on everyone stepping up and playing close to their best.

“Our seniors are a young team with only two girls in Year 12. It’s a good sign for the future. If they keep developing as players and a team, the next few years could be promising.”