It’s early doors, but Rumbalara may have pulled off the best signing of the off-season across the district netball landscape.
The club has reeled back three-time Wellman Family medallist and 2016 Murray Netball League best-and-fairest winner Jessie Barnes for 2024.
Barnes returns to the court after a year off, heading back to Mercury Dve for the first time since 2016 following what’s considered the best individual run in Goulburn Valley League history.
One of the great goalers of the modern era, Barnes spent five seasons at Shepparton United where she became the first person to win three straight Wellman Medals.
But the good news doesn’t stop there at Rumbalara.
Jess Bamblett has signed on as A-grade coach for another year and cannot wait to have a sharpshooter of Barnes’ calibre at her fingertips.
“It’s fantastic news for all our young, junior players to have not just a player, but a role model like Jessie Barnes back at Rumba; welcome back home,” Bamblett said.
“Jess is a great player and what she brings to the club, not only on the court but off the court too. She’s passionate like me about junior development, so the likes of us running our junior development is going to be fantastic.
“We had a great season this year with all our juniors making finals bar 17s because we didn’t have a team.
“I think it’s going to grow even more than what it has, so watch this space.”
Rumbalara’s reinstatement of Bamblett is a shot across the bows to other premiership contenders following the likes of Nathalia’s recent signing spree.
Bamblett’s side finished the 2023 home and away season in third, bowing out in the elimination final.
But as Barnes re-enters the fold it only galvanises a sublime core made up of Nakiah Bamblett, Sophie Atkinson, Yilanii Atkinson, Tiarna Steel and so on.
“We stepped in a different direction this season with bringing some juniors up and trying to get some juniors through the ranks,” Bamblett said.
“I think it’s unfinished business and the fact that we made finals after recruiting pretty late with some older age players, it was easy for me to step back into the coaching.
“With the team that we’re looking like having this year, we’re still recruiting, but we have the main players coming back.
“That’s a pretty good, experienced line-up, so if we get those young girls and maybe one missing piece in the middle which we’re hopefully going to recruit.”