Netball Champions

I knew my daughter's netball grand final would be a more serious event than an ordinary schoolgirl netball game, I just didn't know how much more serious.

It wasn't just that the audience was larger, although siblings, fathers and grandparents who had never before attended a game came to watch. Certainly, the players were more nervous than usual. And in contrast to the normal chattiness, the scorers and timekeepers sat in hushed isolation together.

When the national anthem began to play on the loudspeakers just before the game began, then I knew something was really different.

Even the umpiring was more serious. There were three umpires instead of the usual one.

The picture above is of a goal scored by my daughter. She was privileged to be selected to play her two favourite positions, goal shooter and wing attack.

This has been a wonderful season for our girls. Their coach was inspiring; tough but fair. She taught them to lose with grace and to win without gloating.

The icing on the cake: they won the grand final 22-9.

I am a proud mother.