"We are building each year": Strikers coach signs for third year

TRACEY Brereton will coach Bendigo Strikers’ championship team for a third Victorian Netball League season next year.

Brereton, who led the Strikers to finals for the first time in the club’s brief history this season, has signed on for a further year.

Her reappointment was announced by the Strikers only days after the team’s season ended in a semi-final loss to Boroondara Express.

Brereton – the club’s inaugural championship coach – said she is excited for the opportunity to keep growing what the Strikers organisation has built over its first two seasons in the state’s premier netball competition.

“I feel we are building each year, so with another year to see where we go, it’s going to be exciting,” she said.

“It’s been an exciting journey already.

“The core group of girls that we have got here, and the coaches, the admin and the board, everyone is on the same page and are here for the right reasons.

“It would be hard to walk away.”

After a solid debut season in 2024, Brereton’s championship team showed linear improvement in 2025, culminating in the club’s first finals appearance and finals win.

The Strikers finished the minor round season in fifth place with a 12-6 record, before defeating the fourth-placed Casey Demons in a one-goal thriller in the first week of finals.

They finished the 2024 season in sixth place with a 9-11 record but missed finals under the previous four-team finals format.

Brereton could not have been prouder of the team’s 2025 season.

“It is so hard just getting into finals in this competition, so to get there, tick the box and win one … we’ve overachieved,” she said.

“I am really proud of what we have achieved, but more so in the fact that the majority of the girls who played in our finals were the foundation players who helped set this up.

“We want to keep as many of those players as we can to keep what we’ve built going and to keep showing our 23-and-under players how strong we are and how united we are as a club.”

Tracey Brereton is thrilled to have put pen to paper to sign a one-year coaching extension to lead the Strikers’ championship team.

The success of the Strikers in the club’s first two seasons has only vindicated the decade-long battle fought by many to secure a VNL licence for the region.

For athletes harbouring aspirations of playing higher-level netball, having a VNL club on their doorstep has been a windfall for emerging netballers in the club’s catchment area, according to Brereton.

“You only have to see just how well we have bolstered our 23s,” she said.

“There are a few 23s players who are so mature beyond their years.

“It’s a really exciting time for talented netballers.

“To think about the calibre of players we have from Bendigo, all the way up that band to Yarrawonga and Albury-Wodonga, it is exciting.

“We need to make the most of what we’ve got.”

The Strikers’ 23-and-unders also made finals for the first time this season.

As part of its review of the season, the Strikers will hold its player exit interviews this week, ahead of the up-coming VNL re-signing period, which allows players to recommit to their current clubs.

Once the re-signing period ends, clubs can begin approaching and signing new players, including those from other VNL clubs.

An exhilarating second season for the Strikers was an exciting one on many levels for Brereton, who got to coach the Melbourne Mavericks into a grand final in the Super Netball Reserves competition.

Her Mavs team included four Strikers players, championship vice-captain Zoe Davies, Emma Walters and Teal Hocking, and from the 23-and-unders, Mackenzie O’Dwyer.

Brereton said the opportunity to work alongside Mavericks head coach Tracey Neville and assistant coach Nicole Richardson was a fantastic experience and an important one for her development as a coach.

“I can’t speak highly enough of how inclusive the Mavericks’ environment is and how welcoming they were of the reserves girls coming in in conjunction with their contracted 10 players and training partners,” she said.

“It’s just a terrific atmosphere and that’s why the reserves did so well and go to the gold medal match.

“I’m thankful for the opportunity.”