MAFFRA Basketball’s Under 16 boys and girls’ teams headed to Bendigo last weekend to compete in the 2023 Division 1 and 2 Junior Country Championships.
After months of training and playing in local tournaments, the teams took to the courts against the top 16 teams in country Victoria.
Day 1 was all about qualifying for the top eight (Division 1) and with two wins, the Eagle girls put themselves through in second place in their group.
The boys’ side had to win their third game on Saturday by four or more to make it through to Division 1.
A terrific performance against Bellarine went the way of the Eagles, who came up victors by seven points, pushing them through to the top level in the state.
Sunday’s qualifying finals saw Maffra take on Geelong in both the girls’ and boys’ competitions.
Unfortunately, the strength of Geelong was too much for the Maffra girls, and saw them go down 25-52.
The boys’ game was back-and-forth, and while the Eagles took the lead early in the fourth quarter, Geelong pulled away to finish the game and won 52-44.
The Eagle girls finished in sixth position, while the boys finished the weekend in eighth.
When looking across the competition, the difference in population sizes when compared to other teams in the Division 1 competitions is most noticeable.
Maffra’s population, sitting at around 5000, was by far and away the smallest on both sides of the draw.
Facilitators of the Eagles say to have teams finish in the top eight in the state is a great credit to their athletes, coaches and parents for countless of hours of dedication to their sport and association.
