By Lance Jenkinson
The future looks bright at the top end for Sunshine Softball Association.
However, there is still a need for an influx of numbers at the entry level for softball in the west to thrive into the future.
The good news is the talent already involved in the SSA is showing plenty of promise and the state selectors are taking notice.
The SSA has a stack of players, officials and umpires involved in Victorian representative teams at the under age level, from development and academy programs to state teams.
SSA secretary Jo Ingram is excited to see so many representing Victoria.
“There’s about half a dozen of the young ones who have been in representative teams or state teams or squads, so it’s been quite a successful season,” she said.
“Particularly one of the clubs, Deer Park Softball Club, has got probably four or five from their club alone.
“We actually even have some state coaches from our association as well.”
In the youngest representative group, the SSA has Violet Green and Bonnie Bailey in the girls and Noah McMahon, Liam Steadman and Rhyley Witenden in the boys representing School Sports Victoria’s 12-and-under team.
An encouraging sign for the future was the eight-player contingent from SSA in the under-13 development program that took teams to Adelaide this year.
Greene and Bailey are joined by Sari Bailey in the girls, while Witenden and Steadman are part of the boys’ squad with Markus Ainslie, Dallas Greene and Will Kronk.
Four players were part of the Softball Victoria under-15 academy program that also went to Adelaide, including Lillia Greene and Trinity Kingi-Tarei in the girls and Ethan Ainslie and Saxon Bailey in the boys.
On the horizon early next year is the national championships in January, with Felicity McMahon representing the Victorian under-15 girls in Perth, while Brodie Taylor and Troy Hotere-Moana will be part of the under-15 boys in Canberra.
Katarina Heteraka-Kelly is part of the Victorian under-17 state team, while Marlie Hurinui represents the Victorian under-19 girls.
While there is plenty of elite talent on the books, Ingram said that SSA was hit hard at the entry level this year.
She wants to see more players signing up at the SSA in the new year.
“We need a really big boost,” she said.
“We’ve lost quite a few kids, the numbers are down a little bit.”
