Written by Amelia Barnes
Victoria’s elite men’s and mixed netball teams have returned from the 2023 Australian Men’s and Mixed Netball Association (AMMNA) National Championships, walking away as the country’s most successful state.
Victoria won four premierships in the Men’s Reserve, 23 & Under Men, 20 & Under Men, and 17 & Under Boys divisions respectively, in addition to the Open Men who finished runners up.
New Victorian Men’s and Mixed Netball Association (VMMNA) head coach Gerard Murphy was instrumental in leading all teams on court and ensuring their recovery throughout the action-packed week.
“He did an amazing job. He worked alongside every single team,” said Jayden Cowling, Victorian Open Men’s athlete and Netball Victoria’s male netball participation coordinator.
Several Victorian athletes were named in the All Star 7s that represent the best performing athlete in each position of every division.
Victoria’s umpires were also outstanding, with Joel Owen awarded Umpire of the Tournament in his 30th year officiating at AMMNA Nationals. Amy Winchcombe was selected to umpire the 23 & Under Men grand final, and Jayda Young the 17 & Under Boys grand final.
Catch up on all the VMMNA highlights from each division of the 2023 AMMNA National Championships.
Open Men
Winner: West Coast Thunder (Western Australia)
Runner up: Victoria
Victorian All Star 7s: Brodie Roberts (GA)
Game to rewatch: Victoria vs WA, Round 7. Sue Gaudion joined VMMNA president Matthew Blomeley on commentary for this exciting match that saw significant rotations from both teams. There were several lead changes throughout the game, with only a one-goal margin going into the final quarter. Victoria showed their squad’s depth, with Tim Malmo upping his defensive game when moving from WD to GK to help shut down the highly versatile defender/shooter Dravyn Lee-Tauroa in GA.
It was a battle from the start in the Open Men division with Victoria, New South Wales, and Western Australia all in a great position to take out the 2023 championship.
It wasn’t the start Victoria wanted, losing 31-43 in the grand final rematch against last year’s champions, New South Wales.
“Obviously we wanted a bit of revenge there, but we were a bit flat coming out,” said Cowling, Victorian Open Men’s WA/GA. “We probably had high expectations of ourselves to deliver straight away, but it's not a matter of peaking in that first game. We wanted to make sure we got as many players on court as possible, which we did, so that set us up for the rest of the week.”
The team quickly bounced back, with Victoria taking the win in their first meeting against Western Australia (46-41). It was a huge confidence boost for Victoria, who had lost to Western Australia by large margins in practice matches leading up to Nationals.
Heading into finals, Victoria was in a strong position after defeating NSW by two goals in Round 9. “We knew it was really anyone's game to be honest,” said Cowling of finals. “We had beaten everyone, and they had won throughout the week as well.”
Western Australia booked their place in the grand final in the qualifying final with a two-goal win over Victoria (38-40).
The Victorians were back out on court just a few hours later for the preliminary final, which saw their strongest win over NSW in recent years (45-36).
One of the biggest crowds in AMMNA Nationals history assembled to watch the Open Men grand final between the home side and Victoria. Western Australia presented a new line-up, with Matthew Brown starting the game at GS for the first time following his game changing performance in the qualifying final. Jerome Gillbard – regularly the starting GS for the Australian Men's team – played out the full game for Western Australia at GA.
This line-up proved to be the winning formula, underpinning a strong first quarter by Western Australia that set them up for success. While Victoria matched their intensity in the remaining quarters, it wasn’t enough to take the win. Western Australia finished 42-36 at full time to win in the Open Men division for the first time since AMMNA Nationals began in 1985.
Victoria had plenty of positives to take from the week, including the debut performances of Josh Byron, Ronan Pring, James Sutton, and Tom Hardwick.
Australian representative and Victorian captain Brodie Roberts showed his signature creativity and flair in the goal circle, despite having undergone surgery for a dislocated finger just 10 days prior to Nationals. “He led by example and really stood up in those games. He's a big-time player and we know that he can deliver,” said Cowling of Roberts.
The tenacity of Australian representative and Victorian co-vice captain Riley Richardson likewise impressed in the midcourt.
Men’s Reserve
Winner: Victoria
Runner up: ACT
Victorian All Star 7s: Liam Killey (GS), Adam Franz (C); Jake Dambrauskas (WD), Dan King (GK)
Grand final MVP: Simon Cartwright
Game to rewatch: Victoria vs ACT, grand final. ACT pushed Victoria to their closest margin all tournament when it counted. After trailing at half time 32-17, ACT won the third quarter by five goals, setting up a competitive final 15 minutes of netball.
The Men’s Reserve team came out firing in 2023 after a three-goal loss against NSW in the 2022 grand final. “They were really unfortunate not to win last year. A lot of their key players returned, and they had a bit of fire in their belly to go one better this year,” said Cowling.
Coach Alexia McConnell rotated players efficiently throughout the week, setting the team up for an excellent campaign.
Victoria was undefeated across the tournament thanks to strong performances by returning players including captain Joshua Smith, Adam Franz, and Steve McCallum alongside several new players.
Debutant Liam Killey in particular was a game changer at GS, bringing his background in basketball and height to the goal circle. “He dominated all week … He’s definitely a player to watch out for next year,” said Cowling.
Experienced defender Simon Cartwright was also a tournament standout, earning the grand final MVP in the 62-40 win against ACT.
Following this year’s strong performance, Cowling expects Killey and Jake Dambrauskas, who recorded 11 intercepts in a single game, to be pushing for Open Men selection in the coming years.
23 & Under Men
Winner: Victoria
Runner up: Western Australia
Victorian All Star 7s: Connor Lilley (GA), Anthony Maniapoto (C), Tristan Comans (GD) and Callum Baird (GK)
Game to rewatch: Victoria vs Western Australia, grand final. After trailing for most of the game, a turnover, intercept, and buzzer-beating goal in the last 20 seconds sealed the deal for Victoria in the most talked about match of the tournament.
Victoria’s 23 & Under Men experienced many highs and lows throughout the competition, finishing with a spectacular win in the grand final against the home team Western Australia (40-39).
It followed a rough start to the week, with two of Victoria’s experienced players in captain Ethan Spiteri (GS) and Adam Hoogwerf (WA) both suffering ACL injuries on day one (in a training run and Round 1 respectively).
Victoria’s first match turned out to be a teaser of the eventual grand final, except this time it was Western Australia who came out on top (47-48).
16-year-old and 17 & Under Boys captain Brodie McCleish (GA/GS/WA) was brought into the Victorian team in Round 7 following Spiteri and Hoogwerf’s injuries.
Victoria experienced wins and losses against the other premiership contenders, South Australia and Western Australia, proving it was anyone’s game in finals.
McCleish showed his ability to play at the 23 & Under Men level no better than in the grand final. He entered the game at GS in the second quarter, joining experienced Australian Under 20s training partner Connor Lilly at GA.
Craig Moore coached the 23 & Under Men to take the lead for the first time in the fourth quarter. With less than 20 seconds to go, McCleish was called for a held ball, but Victoria soon regained possession thanks to an intercept from Anthony Maniapoto at C. The ball went back into McCleish who landed a long-range goal just before the final siren.
“Our Open Men, having just lost their grand final, were the loudest supporters in the crowd doing everything to get the boys across the line,” said VMMNA president Matthew Blomeley.
Cowling adds, “It was incredible. The best atmosphere ever…Everyone had tears in their eyes on the side of the court.”
20 & Under Men
Winner: Victoria
Runner up: Queensland Regional
Victorian All Star 7s: Terron King (GS), Shane Maniapoto (GA), Harrison Lefebure (WA), Josh Fell (WD), Ryan Lovell (GK)
Grand final MVP: Riley Colafella
Game to rewatch: Victoria vs Queensland Regional, Round 7. Victoria recorded their most dominant performance against the 2023 runners up with a 30-goal win (52-22).
The Victorian 20 & Under Men went back-to-back in 2023 continuing their exceptional form from last year’s AMMNA Nationals. The team was undefeated across the week, recording huge margins in every game.
In his first year out of 17 & Under Boys division, Australian representative Terron King proved unstoppable at GS, having gained experience playing in the Men’s Premier Division of MLeague (Victoria's premier men's and mixed netball competition).
Fellow MLeague Premier player and Australian representative, Joshua Feeney, also impressed in the midcourt with his consistent crafty play.
Following a huge 15-6 third quarter, Victoria secured the grand final with a convincing 53-24 win over Queensland Regional.
17 & Under Boys
Winner: Victoria
Runner up: South Australia
Victorian All Star 7s: Djay Elliott (GS), Will Whiteacre (GA), Zac Mabilia (C), Reikken Brodie (WD), Joel Brown (GK)
Grand final MVP: Zac Mabilia
Game to rewatch: Victoria vs South Australia, qualifying final. Victoria had their closest match to date against the eventual runners up, South Australia, in the qualifying final. Victoria was up by just one goal at half time but pushed the margin out to 13 at the final whistle.
Victoria’s 17 & Under Boys came out on top in their second undefeated year in a row at AMMNA Nationals.
It was a relatively new-look team, with several players joining the 12-player main squad including Eric Billing (2022 training partner), Reikken Brodie, Christian Doukas (2022 training partner), Connor Drysdale, Djay Elliott, Nicholas O'Meara, and Kane Wilson (2022 training partner). 2023 training partner Aiden Conheady was also elevated during this year’s competition to replace Brodie McCleish who was elevated to the 23 & Under Men.
The Victorians didn’t miss a beat under the guidance of their captain, Zac Mabilia. The midcourter was a standout player across the week, being named at C in the All Star 7s and the grand final MVP.
The team’s youngest member, 14-year-old Will Whiteacre, stepped up in McCleish’s absence as the experienced goaler alongside star debutant Djay Elliott.
Reikken Brodie showed his versatility, switching from his regular MLeague Junior position of GA to dominate in WD.
After a relatively tight 55-42 meeting against South Australia in the qualifying final, Victoria took it to another level in the grand final. Victoria won the final game by a massive 45 goal margin, 74-29.
The dominance of Victoria’s junior division across AMMNA Nationals is testament to the strengthening men’s netball pathway in the state.
“It’s been continuing to grow in the past few years now that there's that clear pathway into Victorian state terms at the junior level,” said Cowling. “Every single player in that 17s team has a very bright future.
Open Mixed
Winner: New South Wales
Runner up: Queensland
Game to rewatch: Victoria vs Queensland, Round 7. After losing to Queensland by 44 and 41 goals in Rounds 1 and 4 respectively, Victoria fought back in their second meeting to cut the margin in half, finishing 44-66.
Victoria’s Open Mixed team went into the 2023 AMMNA Nationals with the aim of building across the competition. This goal was achieved, with the team’s talent on show in competitive games against Western Australia in Round 4 and 8, and the eventual premiers New South Wales in Round 6.
Victorian Netball League (VNL) athletes Georgia Hellyer, Jamie Clark, and Elly Randall from Ariels, and Mia Washington from Southern Saints, showed leadership across the tournament, alongside returning players Dale Mason, Sam Dugan, and Daniel Stone.
Rewatch selected 2023 AMMNA Nationals game on Cluch
Keep up to date with Victoria’s men’s and mixed teams by following VMMNA on Instagram
