'A buzz around the kids': Spinks stars in another strong Gunnedah showing

And after yet another strong campaign Country Championships over the weekend, coach John Hickey said Spinks was "obviously the standout".

With 13 personal bests from 13 races, four bronze medals, one silver, and one gold, it is hard to deny.

"Included in that was the 400 gold medal and a club record for the 400, so that was outstanding," Hickey said.

But the 11-year-old was not the only standout from the small Gunnedah-based club. Alexis Whitton, another familiar face at representative meets, snared a gold and silver medal, while young talent Banjo Fitzgerald also produced a gold medal.

With three medals at last year's School Sports Australia Swimming Championships, Whitton has established a reputation as an athlete with boundless potential.

But in the lead-up to the Country Championships, she was hamstrung by illness and not at her best in the pool.

"She's been ill, she's just not been 100 per cent for about eight months now but she's still capable of winning. That's how talented she is," Hickey said.

"She gets too lactic to swim 100 metres very fast, so we concentrated on the 50 metre freestyle."

Despite her imperfect lead-in, Whitton won the 50 metre freestyle and came second in the 50 metre backstroke.

Meanwhile Fitzgerald, at just nine years old, was one of the younger members of the 10-strong cohort and competed in five events.

Despite his youth and relative inexperience in the sport, Hickey was hugely impressed by the speed of the young man's progression over the last 12 months.

"Banjo, who won the 50 butterfly, couldn't do butterfly a year ago," he said.

"We knew Banjo was going really well with a few events, but in particular butterfly, and we expected that he'd be competitive there. He got up and smashed his opposition, he swum out of his skin."

In all, the club earned three gold medals, four silvers, and five bronzes. And even though there were fewer swimmers in attendance from Gunnedah than Hickey expected, they still proved more than capable of producing the high-level performances they have become known for.

In light of their strong performances, Hickey said the kids left SOPAC on Sunday with smiles on their faces.

"There was a bit of a buzz around all the kids," he said.

"The parents were very good on the weekend, it's great to have parent support. They could see how much their kids have improved."