Sion Hill reels off more National Netball success
Long standing coach and the fulcrum of Sion Hill Netball for the past 10 years, Michell Wiseman-Sam, has hailed the success of the representative team in this year’s national tournament, as “well planned”.
Her comments came following Sion Hill’s trumping of the Division Two title of the 2024 Bank of SVG/FLOW National Netball Tournament which began in March and is slated to end in June.
Promoted to Division Two, after winning Division Three last year, Sion Hill defeated all that came before them to pouch another title.
Their journey to the title saw the team defeating Carlos James Walfulasun Northern Girls 51-30; SVG General Services Maple, 50-33; and Total Ten Technologies Netters, 45-34.
Other results saw Sion Hill stopping Bagga United 54-38; On Trac X- Ceded Sports Club, 48-33; and Cashwiz Green Hill Sports Club, 36-29.
“ It is all coming together…we started to build this team back in 2016 when we had a talent identification programme,” she explained.
“We began with entering a very young team in the Sion Hill competition before venturing out in the national tournament in 2018.”
Wiseman-Sam was particularly delighted with the fact that her charges were in Division Three last year and has placed their stamp in the higher division.
“ We won Division Three last year and [were] promoted to Division Two this year, and here we are now- Division Two League Champions…this is testimony of the what we have started and continues to bear fruits,” the former national net baller stated.
Wiseman- Sam noted that a decision to play in the Glenside Competition proved to be a good fillip ahead of the national tournament.
“We used that as good practice for us, knowing that we were going into the national tournament and it has paid off.”
Also pleasing was the recognition that the Sion Hill players are receiving.
She singled out Annicia Dallaway, who made the St Vincent and the Grenadines Senior team while playing in the third division.
Also, earlier this year, two players from the Division Three outfit- Ammunique Edwards and Kyla Lewis, were selected on the St Vincent and the Grenadines team to the Jean Pierre Under-16 Tournament that was held in St Lucia.
“ We want not only to win titles and put players on the national teams, but…we want to use the sport as a means of molding characters of these young ladies,” Wiseman- Sam said.
In 2018 and 2019, Sion Hill won both the League and Knock-out titles in Division Four, which earned them promotion to Division Three in 2023.
They answered that call by winning the League title.
Sion Hill entered a new team in Division Four in 2023 and, undaunted by the new challenge, they lifted the league title with much aplomb.