Competing in division 3 at the Netball NSW 2018 Samsung State Championships, the side will be up against competitors from 20 other centres, some with greater pools of talent such as Goulburn, Tamworth and Forbes.

For coach Louise Hamer though, the fact that Blayney netballers have continually punched above their weight in the championships, means that this year she’s feeling very confident.

‘Last year we placed in the middle of the field and they were a straight under 16’s team playing in the under 17’s,” she said.

“But this year five of those girls are returning and they’re all now under 17’s, and also four under 16’s as well.”

In the lead up to this weekend the team has participated in a number of regional carnivals, and Hamer is impressed by what they’ve achieved and their potential this weekend.

“Now that we’re all in the right age group I think that we’ll end up towards the top,” she said.

Hamer added that the round robin competition will be a tough one.

“They’ve been playing together since they were 12 and play really hard and always have each other’s back,” she said.