Strikers star in national under-21 squad

BENDIGO Strikers star Charlotte Sexton is a step closer to winning a spot in Australia’s team for September’s Netball World Youth Cup, earning a spot in a provisional national 21-and-under squad.

The 22-athlete squad features the country’s most exciting young netballers, many demonstrating strength across the 2025 Super Netball Reserves competition and within Suncorp Super Netball team environments.

Sexton, who hails from Bendigo Football Netball League club Sandhurst, has impressed national team selectors with her form this season for Melbourne Vixens SNN reserves team and with the Strikers in the Victorian Netball League competition.

The inaugural winner of the Strikers’ best and fairest award in 2024, the 21-year-old will again be among the leading contenders for this year’s award.

Sexton is no stranger to national team selection, debuting last year on the Australian 21-and-under team’s tour of Fiji.

In January, she was part of Australia’s team for the 21-and-under tri-series against England and New Zealand.

The national squad of 22 will eventually be trimmed down to 12, plus three emergencies, for the Netball World Youth Cup in Gibraltar during September.

Held every four years, 20 teams will compete in the tournament.Bracing for some tough selection calls ahead of the final team announcement, national 21-and-under coach Cathy Fellows said the strength and depth across the 22 players reflected their potential for success in September.

“This age group is delivering an incredible level of talent,” Fellows said.

“With the Netball Youth World Cup just a few months away, this squad represents our final step in narrowing down to the 12 athletes who will wear the green and gold in Gibraltar.

“The competition for spots will be fierce, and that’s exactly what we want.

“We have a group of athletes who have shown they have the drive, skills, and mindset to compete at the international level.”

Sexton will first play a key role in the Strikers’ first VNL championship finals series, which gets underway in Melbourne next Wednesday (23 July).

She is joined in the squad by fellow Vixens training partners Ruby Shannon, Lily Graham and Tara Watson.