More named for netball play-offs

More Torres Strait Islander netball players have been selected to play into the top levels of the Vicki Wilson competition finals.

The Indigenous boys and girls teams will play for a Cup or Shield, depending on their ages, against the best 23 schools in the state.

For the boys, natural athlete Zakius Matthew, who is best known for his Touch and Oztag skills as well as being a deadly netballer, was chosen for the 10-strong team.

For the girls, Tahira Muckan, Allah Lacey, Keiriana Dargin-Clark, Kiesha Muckan and Laura Beschel have been selected to play off for the 2023 Vicki Wilson Cup.

Tahira has played state age netball with Pine Rivers and was recently chosen to play in the Thunder Under 16s for the state titles. She was a co-captain of last year’s Shield team.

Kiesha played at semi-pro level in State Ruby League Netball, and also played for the Cup team last year, as did Keiriana, who has played for state age netball in Caboolture.

Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Community Health Service Brisbane Deadly Choices Coordinator Brendon Cook said they looked for players whose schools were outside of the top 23.

“We prefer the girls to play for their school first in the finals, as this opens up more opportunities for Indigenous players,” he said.

“All schools in Queensland are invited to attend qualifying rounds at 13 regions throughout Queensland.

“Our selectors try to watch as many of the players as possible at the Budgies National Carnival in January, Junior & Senior State Age competitions, QISSN and Vicki Wilson Qualifiers to get a gauge of the talent around the state.”