College netballers eye green pastures

From bibs and skirts to boots and shorts – three Marlborough Girls’ College netballers will take cross-code sport to a new level over the next few months.

Eleri James-Sitters, 17, Lesieli Taufa, 16, and 17-year-old Fiaalii Solomona – key members of the MGC senior A netball team which contests the Marlborough premier competition – were last week selected in the Tasman Mako women’s side to contest the Farah Palmer Cup.

The trio’s call-up to national provincial level came a day after they were part of the Moutere women’s team which took out the Tasman Trophy final, beating Waimea Old Boys 10-6 at Nelson’s Trafalgar Park.

They will have plenty of company in the 35-strong Mako squad, six of their Magpies’ team mates also making the cut, namely Pippa Andrews, Raumati Rogers, Aiesha Tepuia, Wikura Kukka-O'Brien, Maiden Tupara and Kelly Collins.

Eleri, who plays wing and fullback, midfielder Lesieli and wing/midfielder Fiaalii are also representative netballers who, over the past few years, have tried their hands at rugby and liked what the game offered.

Asked which sport she preferred, Fiaalii, who first picked up a rugby ball in the Islands at age six, was diplomatic.

“A bit of both, I guess,” she replied. “It’s about 50/50 but I do enjoy the physical side of rugby, the fact I get to tackle people.”

Lesieli, who has a strong family background in the sport and has been playing for three-and-a-half years, said she was not concerned about making the step up to national provincial level.

“Not really. Me and Eleri did Tasman under-18s so we have trained with some of the Mako squad. It is a higher level, but I am looking forward to it.”

With so many opportunities opening up for female rugby players in recent years, Eleri felt there was now a defined pathway to higher honours in the code.

“Making the [Mako] squad at such a young age is quite promising for us.

“I really enjoy rugby because of the pathways that are coming through – in netball getting to the top is very competitive with more people playing the game. So, there is probably a bigger chance of getting to the top in rugby but there is still the same amount of hard work required to get there.”

Eleri began playing in 2019, having 2020 off due to injury. She said that although the MGC girls were new to the squad there was no reason why they couldn’t get some lengthy game time.

She said, “It all depends how it goes in our pre-season games but, if we put in the mahi …”

“… we will get the treats,” added Fiaalii, provoking a round of laughter from the talented trio who now face a daunting balancing act of rugby and netball training, games and tournaments plus college commitments.