Rushworth in cruise control in 15-and-under

It wasn’t the grand final many expected after both teams combined to oust unbeaten Tallygaroopna in straight sets on their way to the final, but when it came down to the flag push, Rushworth was clinical.

The Tigers were rarely troubled in the decider, rushing out to a 16-5 lead by quarter-time.

Defensively Rushy were incredibly disruptive, led by best-on-court Kade Starling, who was active in the passing lanes throughout as the Tigers rushed to a 33-14 advantage at the main break.

There was no turnaround later in the game and the Tigers secured the win 59-27.

Coach Sheree Starling was impressed with her squad’s response to the occasion.

“Its hard to describe really,” she said.

“You never know what the kids are going to bring on the weekend, so to come out and play that well is pretty impressive.

“I knew they could, but when the pressure’s there and the crowd you can make a lot of mistakes as well, so they were amazing.

“Our defence was fantastic, our shooters were on, so really enjoyable.”

The Tigers have a glut of talent that the senior ranks can look forward to in a few years.

The club had so many under-15s interested they also entered a team in the Shepparton Netball Association, a team which also won a flag last week.

“The whole crew's been really good,” Starling said.

“It's been tough working with two teams rather than just one, but at the same time it's been good to be able to play practice matches basically every week, which I think has helped us improve so much.

“That's I think where a lot of our improvement’s come from.”