The tournament brought the best teams from the region together to slug it out for the right to be called the North West Champions.

Glen Innes fought hard against 12 other regional schools including Quirindi, Tamworth, Moree, Gunnedah, Narrabri, O'Connor Catholic College, and Inverell with none of those teams were able to beat the girls from Glen.

Coach Kirstie Fuller said her teams were in good form after winning their zone gala day which made them eligible for the finals. 

“Both of our teams finished the first gala day in Inverell undefeated,” she said.

“The opens team played four games in the finals at Bingara and were courageous in their efforts finishing the day undefeated which was a mighty effort considering they only had 11 players which gave them only one sub. 

“Their fitness and speed were keys to their success and allowed for almost every player on the team to score a try. 

“The Open girls defeated Gunnedah 7 to 1, Moree 3 to 0, Narrabri 9 to 1, and Warialda 4 to 2. Sarah Byrne and Amy Byrne finished the day highest try scorers for the team with 6 and 5 tries respectively across the 4 games.”

The 14s League tag team also dominated their opponents on the day.

“They showed great grit in their performances across the day,” Miss Fuller said.

“They had a close game with a physical O'Connor side leading to a 1-1 draw. 

“That game seemed to spark something in them and following this effort though they were hard to stop defeating Inverell 2 -0, Moree 2 to 0, Narrabri 2-0, and Tamworth 3 to 0. 

“They were very strong in defence and showed excellent speed to catch any breaks that were made. This team was made up of 17 girls, each showed excellent sportsmanship and camaraderie.”

Head PE teacher and Coach Richard Taylor said he was impressed with the skills shown by both teams.

“Credit must go to Andrew Byrne for the work he has done with these players in the community competition,” he said. 

Miss Fuller said being declared North West Champions is a first for Glen Innes High School in this competition. 

“It’s always good to be the trailblazer team and we hope more of our future teams can emulate the efforts of these girls,” she said.

“We hope these two squads can continue to grow and improve with all players eligible to play next year.”