From nothing, to a grand final, against perennial grand finalists – the script could not be better.
Saturday’s B reserve netball grand final between Bonnie Doon and Benalla All Blacks has all the makings of a Hollywood blockbuster, with an incredible game guaranteed.
After not fielding a team in B reserve last year, the Panthers’ meteoric rise in 2025 has been nothing short of miraculous, with All Blacks finishing fifth overall and stringing success after success together to make it to the last Saturday of the season.
All Blacks coach Renae Hughes said the hodge-podge team had coalesced into something truly formidable in the space of one short season.
“I rallied a few troops before heading in, knowing we could make a team and be successful on paper,” she said.
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“There are few oldies in there who bring a wealth of experience and knowledge, and we’ve also got some younger ones too.
“We’re a group of random girls, never played together before, so we started the season off slow but we’ve finally worked out our combinations and set positions that are just working well for us.
“We’ve just finished off on an 11th straight win and we’ll be going for number 12.”
Hughes said they’d go out trying to win but knowing they’ll have fun, regardless of the result.
“I just think the strength is we’re playing for one another,” she said.
“We’re just going to take it as it comes, that’s what it’s about, a lot of fun.
“It’s been over 20 years since All Blacks had a senior women’s side make the grand final.
“[It will be] a massive celebration, win or lose, afterwards – we’re a great bunch, we’ve really gelled together and we’ve become good mates.”
Up against them is one of the best teams going around in any grade, with Bonnie Doon featuring in their fourth consecutive B reserve grand final.
The Bombers went through the season with just the one loss, and are armed with the knowledge they can put substantial scores up against the Panthers.
“I think the B reserve team is full of those that have been at Bonnie Doon for a long time, whether they’re juniors who have come up or more of the girls who have been up in the higher grades and dropped back down,” Bombers head coach Michelle Tanner said.
“That’s probably a strength of ours, we’ve all known each other for a long time and trained together for a long time.
“I wouldn’t say we’ve got an edge [over Benalla], but watching them last week and being able to look back at the livestreams has been beneficial to us - there are things we worked on at training to combat a couple of things they do.
“I think there are a couple of girls who are going to be retiring, so it would be nice to send them out on a high.”
The B reserve match heats up the court at WJ Findlay Oval from 12pm.
