Netball Australia announced the new tournament today, which will be held in Melbourne at State Netball Centre from Friday 13 to Sunday 15 September and will feature under-23 aged teams from every state and territory as they compete across three days of competition.
Netball WA Sue Gaudion General Manager - Performance & Pathway said it was exciting to secure the services of Janz-Dawson.
“We were thrilled when Josie accepted our offer to coach Western Australia’s inaugural First Nations team,” Gaudion said.
“She is the highest accredited First Nations Coach in the State and has been doing a tremendous job at GIG WANL level with the Southside Demons.
“While the team won’t have much time to prepare for this new tournament, we are confident Josie will work with this team and provide them the best opportunity to showcase their talents.”
Gaudion also acknowledged the support of Netball WA’s Charity Partner Shooting Stars.
“I want to thank Helen Ockerby and her team at Shooting Stars for their support and assistance to help make this team possible.”
Janz-Dawson said: “I feel extremely proud to be able to coach and lead this First Nations Team. It is a great opportunity for the athletes to come together, connect and perform as a representative team.
“For some of these players it will be a step in the right direction for their netball journey and hopefully with some gained experience, they will continue to strive for more beyond performing at the First Nations Cup.
“We have a great selection of talented athletes already in the GIG WANL, State and Australian high-performance systems and we hope that this team can build that shared knowledge of what it takes to be an elite athlete.
“We are very grateful for the support from Netball WA and the West Coast Fever High Performance Team. I am looking forward to seeing what our team can achieve in a short timeframe, but they are all very excited to get the program underway.”
