Tigers primed to repeat history

NEW Colac Netball Club coach Courtney Cuolahan says familiarity will play a key role in 2023 if her side is to make it back to the top of the Geelong Netball League, after the Tigers secured its first Geelong league flag since joining the competition.

Cuolahan, a former Colac product, took over the reins at the end of 2022 from co-coaches Jesse Lang and Tahlia Jeffrey, now hoping to instil a new playing style for a side eager to build off last season.

“I like to bring the intensity to games, something that I’ll echo throughout the season,” Cuolahan said about her coaching style.

“In some games, I did find Colac last year wavered in and out of some of their games, so we’ll aim to put in four solid quarters every week.

“That brand of netball is what I hope Colac will become known for in 2023.”

The Tigers will continue to boast one of the best defensive pairings in the region in Brooke Allan and Indya Forde, and Victorian Institute of Sport star Zara Walters is also back in the side.

Cuolahan also listed Kelsey Lang, Eliza Cahill, Emily Murfitt, Bec and Michelle Winch, and Lily Eldridge from Camperdown in the Hampden League as Colac Tigers in 2023.

“We’re very lucky as a club to have a group of players that has spent so much time with one another and has developed as a group,” she said.

“They’ve grown up together and I’ve seen some of these players develop as netballers since they were five [or] six years old, which is super-rare at clubs nowadays.

“With that in mind, there’s no limit to what this group could do this season.”

Colac is the first GNL side to receive the bye, meaning its season begins on April 22 at Central Reserve against Leopold.