Peninsula Softball Club is proud to have no fewer than six Peninsula players on the U14 Manly-Warringah Softball Association Representative Team for 2020.
These include, from left to right, Kellie Cohen (Manager), Alice Campbell, Talea Tonga, Carys Thomas-McDonnell, Minty Tetz, and Andi Lau.
The girls were selected for the team after a rigorous trial process that included the three-day Australia Day weekend tournament in Canberra in January, followed by a delayed follow-up trial at Abbott Road in June.
Kellie Cohen, a long-time Peninsula player, coach, and manager, joined the Rep Team as Manager. Kellie is particularly proud of the girls given that she has probably coached all of them at some point - and played a big role in their development as softball players.
The Peninsula contingent join nine other girls from the other four Clubs in the Manly-Warringah U14 Rep Team and are coached by Sue Brandenburg, Kylie MacFadzean, Jess Rooke, Danielle Armour and Lauren Herbert.
The team trains on Thursdays and Sundays and will play against other Rep teams from all over NSW in the State Championships that were scheduled for late-September, but now delayed because of further Covid restrictions.
The girls bring a range of experiences to the team, with Carys and Minty being only two of three veterans left from the U14 team last year, Alice moving up from the Development team, while Andi and Talea have moved up from playing in the State Championship-winning U12 Team from 2019. Together, though the girls are only between the ages of 11 and 13, they bring almost 30 years of playing experience to the team(!), with most of them playing for Peninsula Club teams since as early as Year 2.
They also cover all the bases. Minty and Andi are both pitchers, Alice enjoys playing first base, Talea usually plays short-stop, and Carys catches.
The girls say they are very excited to be on the team, and are looking forward to getting on with some games and eventually the State Championship. They believe they have a great team this year, and are enjoying training with each other and the other girls from different clubs. They say they love learning new drills and skills with their team of very experienced coaches. The girls are very proud to wear the Manly Warringah colours.
The State Championships will be held at Southern Districts Softball Association on Dec. 12-13, 2020. They will be joined on the MWSA Rep team by teammates Addie Puklowski, Andie Jones, Charlotte Curulli, Charlotte Calabretta, Hazel Labador, Layla Geros, Le'a Tamale, Tilly Clarke, and Rachel O'Connor.
In the coming weeks and months, we will be featuring more of the many Peninsula players in the Representative and Development Teams from the U10 Teeball team up to the Opens.
These teams give many of our hard-working softball players more opportunities to develop their skills and build confidence, meet new friends, and compete at a high level. For more information about the Representative teams and dates of trials, please check in with the Manly-Warringah Softball Association website.
Many congrats to the Peninsula girls!