The fourth side, meanwhile, narrowly missed out on taking the crown in their competition.

Taking into account the division in which they played, the under 13s’ effort of finishing sixth was the best result in the history of the Bathurst association.

The Bathurst under 15s side finished just four points adrift of champions Coffs Harbour at the conclusion of their three-day campaign at Penrith on Monday in division three.

Though they were defeated comfortably by Coffs Harbour 18-8 in their meeting, and also lost to runners-up Westlakes (20-15), they could have still managed to finish level with both those sides.

Coffs won the title on four-and-against over Westlakes, both teams having finished on 24 points to go one clear of Tamworth and two clear of Bathurst.

Defeats against Muswellbrook (19-16) and Griffith (19-15) proved costly for the Kate McLaren-coached team, as both those teams finished mid-table and on paper Bathurst would have expected to get the better of them.

In the under 12s, 13s and 14s, all three sides were contesting division two for the first time, having come up from the third tier, and they each managed to make an impact.

Importantly, all three easily avoided relegation.

The 12s finished 11th in their first taste of representative netball at that level and their coach Di Coombes couldn’t have been happier.

“It is the first time we’ve played in division two, and we didn’t know what to expect in any of the age groups really. Our side started off a bit slow on day one. I think they found it all a bit overwhelming and the speed of it was a bit much,” she said.

“By day two they found their feet and started to click into gear with a few wins. 

“In that age group it can be so up and down. We defeated Orange, who themselves had beaten Hawkesbury City who finished second and lost only twice in the whole tournament.”

Charlestown took out under 12s and deservedly so after they went undefeated through the carnival, a draw being their only loss of points in 16 matches.

The under 13s only missed the top four by a solitary point after a magnificent performance across the three days, Wagga Wagga taking out the title with 15 wins and a single loss.

Bathurst got off to a tough start, playing Wagga first up and suffering a loss, but they were quick to recover and bagged some impressive wins, including a good victory against top-four side Hawkesbury City.

They also dominated the likes of Orange and Dubbo to stamp themselves as the best side in the Central West for their age group.

In the under 14s, Bathurst weren’t far off the mark but were on the end of a number of close losses, five of them by five goals or fewer plus another two by six goals.

They still managed five wins from their 16 games and comfortably retained their spot in second division, while Lakeside took out the crown with a 15-1 record.

“Overall, it was a major benefit for our association to know that we were pretty close to the mark with a lot of these bigger associations, who have fitness coaches, play at carnivals every weekend and train two or three times a week,” Coombes said.

“We will have a bit of a meeting now and discuss what we can do to try and improve a little bit more and bridge that gap.

“It was a fun three days for everyone. We all stayed together and the older kids really went out of their way to look after the younger ones.

“A lot of people put in plenty of work and we also need to thank Bird Legal who were our major sponsor for the championships.”