For Seymour netballer Courtney Aldous, the 2022 Goulburn Valley League season could not have gone better.
Not only was she the winner of the Lions’ A-grade best-and-fairest and coaches award, but she was also a key part of Seymour’s incredible triple delight on grand final day.
The Lions earned a hat-trick of premierships at Shepparton’s Deakin Reserve on a sunny Saturday last September, prevailing in the A-grade, B-grade and B-reserves finales.
Aldous was the co-coach of the B-reserves side, before taking to the court to play in Seymour’s fantastic 53-39 triumph over Shepparton United.
Looking back, Aldous said grand final day was one to remember.
But now, the Lions are firmly focused on trying to secure what would be their third consecutive A-grade crown.
“It’s a lot to have on the back of your mind that we’re trying to defend the title,” Aldous said.
“But we have retained a lot of girls, and we’ve got some up-and-coming talent moving up through the grades, so that is really exciting.
“I think everyone’s just excited to play and we’ll just work things out game to game and build from there.
“I think round one is always a bit of a reality check.
“It gives you a bit of an idea of how much work you put in before.
“It’s just good to get out and get a baseline and see how you actually come together as a group in that real game context.”
Seymour’s premiership defence starts against Benalla, with the two sides meeting at 2.15pm on Good Friday at Benalla Showgrounds.
Aldous said it will be exciting to see what the Saints have in store when the opening whistle sounds.
“I’ve seen a few people moved around to different clubs,’’ she said.
“I think they’ve got a pretty new team, which is exciting.
“It’ll be good to come up and see what they’ve been doing and any new faces that they’ve got and see how we match up.”
Seymour finished on top of the ladder in 2022, with 15 wins and three losses, while Benalla ended the year in ninth spot with a 6-12 win-loss record.
Mooroopna and Shepparton United were hot on the heels of Seymour, finishing in second and third behind the Lions on percentage.
The Cats will take on the Shepparton Swans in round one on Saturday night at Mooroopna Recreation Reserve, while the Demons will face off against another of last year’s finalists, the Shepparton Bears, on Friday night at Deakin Reserve.
Tatura will hit the road to take on Echuca and the Bulldogs will be bolstered by two big-name recruits.
Jasmine Fraser will suit up in the red, white and blue having played for Melbourne University in the Victorian Netball League, with Taylor Rokahr also coming across to the kennel.
In the weekend’s other matches, Rochester welcomes Kyabram to Moon Oval, while Mansfield will be hoping to cause an upset against last year’s finalists Euroa in Mansfield – with both games on Saturday at 2.15pm.