Sport
18 March, 2023
Volleyballers set sights on Aussie championships
SEVEN local young beach volleyball players will join the Queensland team at the Australian Youth Beach Volleyball Championships (AYBVC) in Coolangatta from March 27-30.
The AYBVC is the annual premier beach competition for junior athletes on a state-versusstate competition.
Seven Cairns Reefers Volleyball Club athletes will join the Queensland team in hopes of becoming the champion state.
The team of seven of Dipti Sureshbabu, Kirra White, Christina Morton, Kip Fraser-Skeath, Damon Begley, Boudicca Fraser-Skeath and Jack Farmer will compete in the U17, U16 and U14 categories with the Queensland team.
Cairns Volleyball Association president and team coach Chris Poppell said AYBVC allowed the kids to grow in competitive volleyball.
“Volleyball has been quiet in Cairns, a big part of this competition is growing the game,” Mr Poppell said.
“Last year, we travelled with four kids; this year, we’re travelling with seven. So if the kids see that there’s a doorway, not only to play volleyball competitively but also to go away and represent their city and state, it increases engagement.
“Next year, we could take an even stronger team, and locally there would be more talent for others to learn from.” Mr Poppell said this year the team had improved considerably for the AYBVC.
“We’ve had to modify skills and teach them how to use the weather to their advantage, but most of them have a background in indoor volleyball, so they’re already 70 per cent there; the rest is about redesigning that 30 per cent,” he said.
“Last year was a learning experience for us, it was late for Cairns to get involved, and we were still perceived as north Queensland but not a part of Queensland, but we’ve built our own identity this year.
“I believe the kids are going to do well; across the state, at this level, Cairns is hitting well above its weight.”
With most competitive beach volleyball played down south, Mr Poppell said AYBVC was crucial for FNQ athletes to have more opportunities and to promote the quality of the game up north.
“The other huge part for Cairns and us is that there are at least 10 events between the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast, so the kids down south have to travel about 90km, and they can play in 10 tournaments while kids here have to travel over 300km to play one tournament in Townsville,” he said.
“AYBVC means our kids get seen by southeast Queensland; they can go and show that they’ve got something that puts them on the radar, remind them that we have great talent in the Far North, and we shouldn’t be forgotten.”
