Dubbo juniors have continued to punch well above their weight in the opening round of the Waratah Junior League's western division at the weekend.
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Seven junior representative sides travelled to the Riverina for two days of competition, with many very young for their age group.
Most impressive were the under 12 girls, who fielded just two top-age players - Millie Sutcliffe and Tayla Mongan - yet won all four of their games at Griffith's West End Sports Stadium.
"The closest anyone got to us was eight points and that was Bathurst," coach Claire Hargreaves said.
Hargreaves was also proud of the efforts of the under 12 boys, the majority of whom are just nine years old.
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They struggled in their opening round game against the West Wyalong Wildcats Black (53-6), but ran over the top of the Wildcats Silver (47-27) before putting up a strong fight against the Griffith Demons (56-34).
"They did really well to come away with one win after the weekend," Hargreaves said. "But it really is a development year for them.
"It's quite rare to have a full team of bottom age kids but it's just the way it is this season.
"But all reports have been so good after this weekend and all the coaches and kids are looking forward to round two."
A number of Rams juniors helped out as referees across the weekend, with 16-year-old Kate Fuller showing tremendous promise on debut, Hargreaves said.
In the weekend's other results, the under 14 boys won one out their three games, while the under 14 girls, under 16 girls and the under 18 boys all won two of three.
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The Rams juniors had something of a secret weapon on their side, debuting their new playing and warm-up uniforms after the Dubbo Basketball Association secured a host of sponsors for the 2019 season.
"They looked amazing," Hargreaves said.
"When the kids look good, they feel good and they strut around. Like the little nine-year-old I've got in the 12s thought they were really special.
"They're proud to play for Dubbo and they love to win, but half the time they've got no idea if they win or lose in the under 12s. They just want to play basketball."
Another boost was the presence of American import Faatimah A, who travelled to Narrandera in support of the Rams under 16 girls - just days after arriving in Australia.
"It's brilliant - we've never had a female import before," Hargreaves said.
"She came out to our junior rookies program and helped to run that as well.
"She's only little - she's a pure point guard - but she is just so positive and just wants to share her experiences with everyone … the kids are really drawn to her and she'll do amazing things this year for our association."
Round two of the Waratah Junior League takes place in Bathurst on March 16 and 17.
