THE Mansfield Under 12 Girls Gold Team comprising of Sophie Snell, Edie Gardner, Arrie Turner, Macey Thornton, Lara Harrop, Matilda Mills, Georgia Crowe and Alice Rademaker, recently competed in the Southern Peninsula Tournament.

Coached by Adam Snell and Assistant Coach Glenn Thornton, it was their second tournament together as a team and the first time Mansfield Eagles Basketball Club have competed in this tournament.

With a busy schedule for the first day of the tournament, the girls played against Southern Peninsula Yellow in Game 1.

They all brought such enthusiasm and excitement with them on arrival at the stadium and took that energy out onto the court.

From the jump ball their competitiveness and hunt for the ball was on full display as they kept their opponents scoreless in the first half.

They continued playing with strong defence, pressure at the ball, countless intercepts and above all else, exceptional teamwork and had a strong first game win 26–2.

Game 2 was against Mt Eliza Meteors.

A taller side than the previous game, but the girls didn't let that intimidate them and continued to play their style of game, with intense pressure at the ball and half court press.

Despite so many shots at goal not converting, the girls continued to work hard and kept putting up the shots with the support and reassurance from their coach Adam Snell.

Their teamwork was again phenomenal, and they went on to win convincingly 21–0.

With a short break between games and their third game of the day, the girls were feeling tired heading into Game 3 against Wonthaggi Coasters.

But once they stepped onto the court they went to work.

It was their strongest opponent of the day, who had fresher legs having only played two games, so the girls had to work hard.

The girls continued to put pressure on the ball, intercept, work hard in defence and came away with their third win of the day 14–7.

It was an early morning game on the Sunday against Sandringham for Game 4.

With their determination, support from both Adam Snell and Glenn Thornton on the bench and the most incredible support crew cheering from the side–lines, the girls dominated the first half.

They continued playing strong putting into play what they have been learning at practice and doing in their weekly domestic games and kept Sandringham scoreless in the second half.

They went on to win 22–3, placing them on top of the ladder and cementing a place in the Grand Final.

A bye in Round 5 gave the girls an opportunity for a nice break before their big Grand Final late afternoon where they met Wonthaggi Coasters again.

As expected, it proved to be another tough game.

As the stadium temperatures lifted, so too did the intensity of the game.

The girls continued to work hard for the ball, listened to what was asked of them from their coaches and kept cheering each other on from the bench.

They were up at half time, but scores were close.

With more encouragement and advice from Adam and Glenn, the girls took to the court in the second half with even more pressure at the ball, capitalising on rebounds and bringing their A–game defence, resulting in a stronger second half compared to their opponents.

A final score of 19–9 crowned them the Under 12 Girls Division 5 Grand Final winners and undefeated for their second tournament.

Georgia Crowe was awarded MVP for the Grand Final game.

Congratulations girls on another successful tournament and for proudly representing your club again with true teamwork and sportsmanship.

A big thank you to coach Adam Snell for putting in so much time, effort, heart and soul into coaching his little Eagles, to our Assistant coach Glenn Thornton for his knowledge, coaching and support of the team and to the amazing cheer squad of parents, siblings, families, friends and other teams in our Mansfield Eagles Basketball Club for supporting and cheering the girls on throughout the tournament.

Also a huge thank you to Mansfield Power Ag for being the sponsor of the Under 12 Girls Gold Team for this representative season.

The next tournament the girls will be competing is in Shepparton on December 3 and 4.