KNA 2025: Preliminary finals decide grand final contenders across junior and senior divisions

Saturday brought the preliminary finals to town for the Katanning Netball Association’s junior and senior teams, but the morning got off to a more relaxed start as Net-Set-Go players took to the courts.

The association’s youngest players don’t compete in finals, but were eager to get on court as much as possible as the end of their season comes around, wanting to play in every position they could in four quarters.

Rolling substitutions have become a major factor in Net-Set-Go games to allow the players to move through more positions in each game.

Junior teams had their preliminary finals, and with top team Kojonup showing some rare weakness in the first round of finals, the Sapphires had another chance to play for the big day, up against the Nutrien Firebirds.

Dominating the ladder all season, the Sapphires really had to knuckle down after last week’s loss to NAB Lightning, and got some fire in their belly by half-time, soaring through to the final whistle to snatch a 19-goal win and claim their spot in the grand final.

A1, the first game of the senior divisions, had Kojonup 1 facing Olympians 1 to earn a grand final spot, and it was a tough game in all four quarters.

With both sides putting up a hefty fight, it was Kojonup that managed to convert their goal attempts more often, allowing them to creep the margin up to bag a comfortable win.

Olympians’ season came to an end with a 36-62 loss.

A2 had a surprise upset, with Olympians 2 bringing nothing but fire to their game against Kojonup 2.

Sitting at the top of the ladder all season and battling it out for first place with Allstars 2, Kojonup seemed to have played all their cards before the crucial final games.

Olympians had more work to be done from the outset, and came in swinging in the preliminary match, smashing out a tight win to grab a spot in the grand final.

In the A3 competition, Te Taitonga 3 crept their way into the preliminary final, up against Kojonup 3.

In a battle that mirrored their upper grades, Kojonup came in with something to prove, not wasting a second of playing time, and it was the more aggressive side that forged ahead.

Pushing down in the second half, Kojonup had the better of Te Taitonga and their fierce play got them the win they had been holding out for.

Four grand final games in one day is bound to be a spectator’s dream, and the KNA invites everyone in the community to come down to the leisure centre for a full day of competition.