LEETON-WHITTON'S reputation as a breeding ground of top netballers has continued with two of the club's players picking up league medals recently.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
AFL Riverina hosted its annual presentation night recently - albeit a little differently to usual.
The event was held across numerous nights with the vote count taking place for all netball and football grades before the final winners were announced.
Leeton-Whitton's Kasey Aliendi topped the A reserve leaderboard to be named the best and fairest for the league with 19 votes, while Eilish Morden also came away with the top honours for B grade with her 28 votes.
The pair beat out many skilled players across the Riverina and both said they were shocked when they found out they had won.
"I was very surprised," Kasey said.
"I think it was about round five and I was leading then and that was even a big surprise.
"I wasn't on the leaderboard in round 10, but I knew I had a couple of good games towards the end of the year, so I guess I had a bit of a comeback.
"It's a really big honour. I'm really grateful."
Eilish had similar thoughts when it came to her B grade win.
IN OTHER NEWS:
"It was a bit of a shock ... I was at work at the time and was getting a lot of messages so I quickly jumped on and had a look," she said.
"It was pretty exciting.
"I have played netball since I was six-years-old. It's a bit more special for me too because this is my last year playing netball."
Eilish is headed off to university next year in Wollongong where she will be studying psychology, but also taking on a different sport.
"I've played a bit of Aussie Rules in the last couple of years and I have fallen in love with it, so I'm going to give that a bit of a crack," she said.
I wasn't on the leaderboard in round 10, but I knew I had a couple of good games towards the end of the year, so I guess I had a bit of a comeback.
- Kasey Aliendi
Eilish is a mid-court player, typically taking on the role of centre for the B grade Crows, while Kasey is a goal shooter that sometimes steps into the goal attack position in A reserve.
Kasey has also played netball from a very young age, following in the footsteps of her mum Megan, who is a Leeton-Whitton stalwart and also polled well at the league awards this year coming in third for B grade with 16 votes.
"I did get to play one game with mum this year, so that was nice," Kasey said.
"Hopefully I can be as good as her one day."
Both Kasey and Eilish will receive their league medals when Leeton-Whitton hold their presentation event in the near future.
The pair were disappointed their respective teams weren't able to finish the year off after the competition was cancelled due to COVID-19.
Both sides were very really chances of making the grand final, but restrictions and lockdowns left organisers no other choice.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:
- Bookmark www.irrigator.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Google News