BRIGHT HOPES

SAPPHIRES OUT FOR NETBALL GLORY

SOUND the shark alarm because Bond University’s netball team are ready to attack.

After training since January, the Bull Sharks will finally get to play their first game this weekend as the inaugural Sapphire and second-tier Ruby series starts in Brisbane.

As a number of teams prepare to fight to get their name on the inaugural Sapphire Series premiership trophy, Bull Sharks captain Kristen Oxenford said her side were up for the battle.

“We’re going out there to win,” she said.

“It would be phenomenal to take out that inaugural year and win the premiership.

“We’ve set ourselves a goal of making finals and then from there we can reset and try to take out that No.1 place.”

With the league only in its infancy, the 23-year-old admitted the Bull Sharks would have to wait to discover where they sat among the other six teams but that they were itching to play after a long pre-season.

“It’s very hard to gauge what the competition will hold and how we’ll go against other teams,” she said.

“We’re excited for the challenge of the unknown.”

The Bull Sharks will also have to face the challenge of being the youngest team in the league with Oxenford at age 23 being the oldest player in the Sapphire team, though the former Firebird said she hoped to bring her state and national league experience.

“We’re quite a young team so I think the experience myself and a lot of the other girls can bring will be important,” she said. “For me, it’s just teaching the girls about how to thrive in a high performance environment and those behaviours.”

Guiding the Bull Sharks in their inaugural season is coach Sheryl Burns, who Oxenford said had already had a huge impact on the group.

“She’s an amazing athlete and she brings so much to the team and the Sapphire league,” she said.

“She’s taught us a lot of things we haven’t been taught before and it’s quite different the New Zealand style, how they play, but it’s really exciting.”

The Bull Sharks will get the chance to claim their first win of the year on Sunday when they face the USC Thunder (11am) at the QSNC.

“They’ve got a number of state players and so do we so I think it will be quite a good match-up,” Oxenford said.

Bond Bull Sharks (back row, from left): Michelle Newgrosh, Abigail Houston, Bianca Van Dyk, Rylee Burns, Taylah Kiss, Jeante Strydom, Ashleigh Keefe, Leah Pue, Leah Brokmann, Kasey Collins and Mackenzie Jordan. Front row from left: Kahli Henwood, Kiara Ratu, Olivia Dijkstra, Madeline Hall, Kristen Oxenford (captain), Peta Coles, Sarah Kitcher, Leigh Alder and Sarah Chigwidden,