EIGHT months of hard work is set to culminate in three days of fierce competition for some of Tamworth's best junior netballers.
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Tamworth Netball Association's under-12,13 and 14 representative netball teams are set to take on the best teams from around NSW at the state junior netball championships this weekend.
Held in Penrith, the three-day carnival will see each team play around 18 games of netball and fight it out for the number one ranking.
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Tamworth's under-13 coach Megan Cruickshank said there "was a good feeling around the group" heading into the carnival.
"All the girls are going really well at the moment and I'm excited to see them put it all out there on the court," Cruickshank told the Leader.
"Since the trials in December, everyone has trained together a lot and played in plenty of carnivals together as well.
"I think that means everyone feels really comfortable together and it means they will have a bit of an idea of their competition as well, having played them at previous carnivals."
Cruickshank said the carnival was "what we have been striving for and working towards for the past few months."
"I think the under-13 and under-14 sides would be feeling pretty confident, but the under-12 side might be a little nervous with it being their first state carnival," she said.
"Fatigue may play a bit of a part in the carnival, with everyone playing so many games, but they have all been prepared for that and it will be on the team's leaders to help lift everyone up.
"Honestly, I think everyone will have a great weekend."
Cruickshank said she expected all of Tamworth's players to "reach another level" during the carnival.
"It's hard to say who will really stand up because I think all of the girls are well prepared," she said.
"However, I'm really excited to see how Kiana Haines in the under-13 side goes.
"She has shown great leadership potential both on and off the court, so it should be exciting to see how she goes."