The nation's top netball players have descended on the Traralgon Indoor Sports Stadium for the inaugural Australian Netball Championships.
The competition aims to spot emerging talent from 10 state and territory teams to play in the Super Netball League.
"From the competition this week, we'll select our Under 21 Australian squad that will then go into a camp later in the year," said Kristen Barnes from Netball Australia.
The typical pathway for an aspiring school-aged netballer is to play for a local club, then get selected to play for a regional or representative side in their district and hopefully progress to an under 17s and under 19s position in a state team.
"Ultimately, the pinnacle of a professional netball career in being selected to play for the Australian Diamonds," Barnes said.
In terms of what makes a promising netballer in 2022, Barnes said that it varied from position to position.
"What we look for in the Australian way of play is tight player-on-player defence, repeat efforts, technical strong ball skills, the ability to feed the circle and progress the ball down court," she said.
Goal shooter, attack, defence and keeper positions require an optimal height of 185 centimetres or more.
"We're looking for shooters that can shoot all the way through the circle and have really good connections, that are athletic, fit, able to take the contest and put the ball through the ring at the end of the day."
The championships not only spot emerging players, Barnes said, but gave umpires, coaches, bench officials and technical experts an opportunity to progress their career aspirations.
Netball's widening world
Netball is the most popular women's sport in Australia and the nation is the game's world hub, a mantle solidified by the recent Commonwealth Games gold-medal win by the Diamonds.
"Historically Australia and New Zealand have been the two big rivals across the world, and now more so with the introduction of Super Netball, more players are coming through and there are leagues evolving across the world," Barnes said.
"We have athletes coming from all over the world to come and play, whether that be England, South Africa or Jamaica."
It's been a coming-of-age decade for female participation in sport in Australia, with AFL clubs Collingwood and Greater Western Sydney expanding to include a women's football league and netball team.
In the coming years, continued growth in netball is predicted to expand the blossoming men's and mixed competitions.
Traralgon's super-sized sporting aspirations
With the success of the Traralgon Tennis International Junior Tennis tournament, Latrobe City has garnered a reputation for hosting large-scale sporting events.
Much of the shire's investment in new state-of-the art multipurpose sporting and cultural infrastructure emerged after the 2014 Hazelwood mine fire, as part of a regional development strategy.
Investment in flagship Gippsland facilities such as the Gippsland Regional Aquatic Centre and Gippsland Performing Arts Centre, was made in response to the region's growing population, and the hope of generating economic, leisure and social activity in the area.
The 2026 Commonwealth Games will see Latrobe City Stadium in Morwell being upgraded to accommodate the Rugby 7s competition before becoming a soccer venue.
Latrobe City Mayor Kellie O'Callaghan said the city had hosted everything from AFL football and cricket to bocce, badminton and basketball in recent years, with a visit from legendary US basketball entertainers the Harlem Globe Trotters a recent highlight.
"We've known for many years that we have a great economic opportunity to bring visitors to Latrobe, but also drawing people out to broader Gippsland," she said.
"It's about hospitality, the accommodation, people going out to restaurants, buying things at local businesses, but also participating in other local attractions around the area. All of that adds to the economic benefit."
Ms Callaghan also points out the ongoing social benefits of bringing large-scale "morale-boosting" events to pandemic-fatigued locals.
She said that events not only provided a catalyst for community connection and re-engagement with volunteers, but created inspiring experiences for local school children.
At the Australian Netball Championships, visiting and local clubs have facilitated netball clinics on site so kids can participate in an activity before watching a game.
"When you bring people out to these kind of activities, they can also see pathways to participation that link them in to the sporting clubs that are here," Ms Callaghan said.
