For the last two years boom Life Studio defender Alex Emerson has put Netball NSW’s under-17 side on a pedestal, earning a call-up has been her goal, and now she’s ticked that box she’s got her eyes firmly set on helping the sky blues to a title at the 2019 Australian Netball Championships.
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Following a grueling, three-month, multiple-phase selection process – which Emerson made it two thirds of the way through last year as well – Netball NSW made its under-17 and under-19 team announcements on Monday afternoon.
The 16-year-old James Sheahan Catholic High School student actually found out she’d made the cut in slightly different fashion to the rest of her new NSW teammates though.
“I was out hiking in the Blue Mountains with my friends when I found out,” she laughed.
“I’d been out of service all day and checked my emails on our hike back from a waterfall and was sort of like ‘oh, okay, this is happening now’.
“I sort of felt shocked, more than anything. I thought I’d be super excited when I found out but I didn’t really [react too much]. I’m really excited now though.”
Emerson’s selection comes on the back of being named in Orange’s under-17 State Championship and division one West-Central West Regional League squads, and in a nod to the sport’s strength outside the city she’s one of five regionally-based players to have made the cut.
That’s also proof of the value of Netball NSW’s Regional Talent Squad program, which she went through this year.
“It’s [geared towards] making sure you’re prepared for the state trials,” Emerson said.
“I trialed (for the 2018 state side) as well but didn’t make it past Phase II, then once I’d been to all the Regional Talent Squad trainings I figured I may as well trial again.”
Obviously, it’s a decision that paid off.
She worked her way through to the camp stage of the selection process and it was leading into the first of those she started thinking she might be a real chance to earn her first state gig.
“I [thought I might be a chance] after the squad was released. I was the only one from Orange and there was eight defensive players left, with four [to make the final side] I sort of thought ‘well, I’m a 50-50 shot now’,” she explained.
“There was more cuts after the first camp and there was seven defenders left after that. After watching everyone at the second camp I was kind of confident I’d make it.”
She had that confidence despite, at times, trialing at wing attack rather than her more familiar positions of goal defence and goal keeper.
Fortunately for NSW coach Amber Cross Emerson has the versatility to slot into any of those spots at Brisbane next April, but there’s plenty of work to be done before then.
“Until then it’s lots of training, every weekend in Sydney,” Emerson said.
“I’m not sure what [they’ll consist of] but it’s every weekend so it’s pretty full-on.”
She admitted she doesn’t have a huge idea of what to expect at the national titles, outside the fact she’s certain her NSW side will be there to win gold.
“I’ll enjoy the experience obviously, but we’ll definitely want to win,” she said.
“I have heard they’re big girls at this level, very tall and very athletic, and that Western Australia is always one of the toughest sides because of their size, but that’s about it really.”
Although she’s not certain if she’ll be able to play for Orange in next year’s Regional League title defence, which comes before the national titles, she’s hopeful of being released to don Thunder colours.
“I’d like to, playing in Orange and for Orange is so much of the reason I love netball,” she said.
“But we’ll just wait and see what happens.”
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