Orange City Craig Harvey Mechanical mid-courter Brooke Burcher is happy to admit she's feeling a bit of pressure ahead of Saturday's Orange Netball Association Toyota Cup grand final against Life Studio, and for pretty good reason too.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
She used to play for Life Studio and was actually in their 2015 grand final side that was beaten by the Lions, then known as Robin Hood.
Mind you she said as much of the reason this weekend's decider is 'a bit nerve-racking' is because her side's gunning for a 12th straight title, but even so, the fact she'll line up against a lot of her former teammates isn't lost on Burcher.
"There is a bit of pressure and I am feeling it a bit with us going for 12 in a row with a bit of a changed side, because it's not just me," Burcher said, with Katelin Eslick also joining the Lions this year while they lost Erin Johnstone and Milly Wilcox.
"I think that pressure will make the victory all the better if we do manage to get up."
Burcher is set to line up at wing attack in Saturday's grand final and being able to learn from star Orange City mid-courter Tegan Dray was a big reason she joined the Lions, she explained.
- MORE IN NETBALL: Friendship the Lions' key to success as Eslick races the clock to be fit for decider
- MORE IN NETBALL: Life link proves the White move with young, gun shooter shaping as grand final key
- MORE IN NETBALL: OPS claim Western title, break state finals drought ahead of grand final extravaganza
"Yeah, a big reason I came was to get that centre-court knowledge from Tegan. Her and (Orange City coach) Cindy (Gilchrist) have helped me out a lot so hopefully I can put that into practice and have a good game," Burcher said.
Although they managed to do it in two of their three encounters with Life Studio this year, including the major semi-final a fortnight ago, Burcher admitted breaking the navy and lime's miserly defensive end will be a test again.
"They've got a really strong defensive end and it'll be tough to get them off their game. We'll see how we go, but I guess coming from their side I kind of know what they might be doing at training which could come in handy," Burcher smiled.
"I think it's going to be a tight game, a good, even grand final and I think it might come down to experience. I'm looking forward to it, I haven't played in a grand final for a few years, which is nerve-racking but exciting too.
"I think it's about keeping a level head. We probably try not to play as fast as Life Studio do, so I think it's just about taking a few breaths and going back to what we've been doing at training and throughout the season."
Saturday's mouth-watering division one decider begins at 3.15pm on Sir Neville Howse Stadium's show court.
- LIFE STUDIO: Aurella White, Kate Mastronardi, Em Brisbane, Soph Brisbane, Em Williams, Chloe Riley, Alex Emerson, Mardi Aplin, Alice Maier
- ORANGE CITY CRAIG HARVEY MECHANICAL: Kristin Zinga, Maddie Cole, Katelin Eslick, Katie Matthews, Caitlyn Harvey, Brooke Burcher, Sarah Thorley, Tegan Dray, Sam Spicer
WANT MORE ORANGE NEWS AND SPORT?
- Receive our free newsletters delivered to your inbox, as well as breaking news alerts. Sign up below ...