Lake Hāwea Hotel broke a nine year drought to win the 2020 Netball Upper Clutha A grade competition on Friday (September 25) night at the Wanaka Recreation Centre. 

Runners up in 2019, Hāwea went into the match high on confidence after a resounding 44-25 semi final win over Cromwell, and they continued their form to claim the title with an emphatic 48-30 win over the previously unbeaten title favourites Molyneux.

Hāwea set the tone for the match with a turn-over from the first centre pass and scoring the first six goals of the match. A shell shocked Molyneux found themselves down 6-12 at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter was a much closer contest with Molyneux closing the gap to five goals at half time. Hāwea rallied after the break and put the match beyond doubt, taking an 11 goal lead into the final quarter.

The fourth quarter saw a flurry of goals from Hāwea’s Cat Kearsley and Renee Johnson. In Hāwea’s defensive circle Cholena Perry and Jenny Ferguson were outstanding and the team linked well throughout the court.

Hāwea captain Jenny Ferguson (GD) makes an intercept

Molyneux's defensive combination of Laura Dowling and Natasha Kelly worked tirelessly but Hāwea were determined to break the nine year hiatus they have experienced since last time they won the championship.

“Molyneux fought back really hard in the second quarter and we held them off. I felt that was a key moment in the match,” Hāwea captain Jenny Ferguson said.

“We knew it would be tough but we had faith in our game plan and that we’d done the hard work on our conditioning. A lot of people have supported us and we really wanted this trophy to say thanks to our community,” Jenny said.

Hāwea coach Toni Edwards was full of praise for her side. “It was an honour to see them play so well. The team is led by a phenomenal captain in Jen and the girls have a lot of trust and belief in each other.” 

Jenny was quick to acknowledge the work by Netball Upper Clutha in putting the season together. “I must say a huge thanks to Netball Upper Clutha, we played a lot of netball, possibly more than just about anywhere in the country, and we really appreciate it.” 

In other finals:

Senior Reserve final: MANC 10A 41 v Pioneer B 21

B Grade final : MANC C 23 v Cromwell C 29 

C Grade final : MANC 10B 11 v MANC Senior Non Competitive 25 

Adult Social final: Checketts McKay 30 v Mountainside 27

PHOTOS: Gareth Hodges