Former Glen Innes representative netballer Charlotte Raleigh will pull on Northern Territory colours next month when she lines up for the state at the under 19’s National Championships in Adelaide.
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Raleigh hails from North Star, attended NEGS in Armidale, made her way through the representative ranks in the pink and black for Glen Innes as well as being part of the Northern Inland Academy of Sport’s swimming and netball squads before moving to Sydney for university this year.
She tried out for the Northern Territory’s state side after missing out on NSW selection.
“I was nominated for NT and then went to the trials in Darwin a couple of weeks ago and then got selected to play for the NT at Nationals,” she said.
“It has just been a crazy process, I trialled for NSW and didn't get into that team but to have the opportunity and the experience of going over to Darwin was amazing.
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“All the girls over there made it so welcoming and it all went really well.”
The Northern Territory team has more than one interstate player in the squad which makes preparing for the biggest tournament in the country pretty difficult.
Raleigh said they will all get together in Melbourne next weekend for intensive training to get ready for the National Championships.
“The NT girls are flying down, there's two NSW imports and one Victorian import,” she said.
“We are all going to Melbourne to have a really good training week to get to know each other and develop as a team. We are all training separately in talent development but we don't train as a team until Melbourne.”
She is now based in Sydney after getting into university which has opened up more opportunities on and off the court.
While the move has given her more options, Raleigh said it was the start she got in the New England which helped her progress in netball.
“It is a giant leap coming to the city but it has been really, really good,” she said.
“My time at NEGS and representing Glen Innes and Armidale has really made a great foundation for stepping to this new level.
“NIAS as well and going to the Northern Territory and having that experience and having girls coming from everywhere was so similar and I felt so at home.”
Raleigh won the prestigious Chairperson’s trophy at NIAS in 2016 and the Academy’s chief executive James Cooper said she was always “destined for bigger things” in sport.
“We’re extremely proud of Charlotte’s achievements,” he said.
“She has played representative netball the whole way through her young career and we’re excited to see where she goes from here.
“It’s not just on the court that Charlotte shone, she was a leader and an inspiration to her piers both on and off the field.”