Well before the siren had sounded to end Saturday’s A-grade Kyabram district league netball grand final, one veteran Girgarre player had already made her mind up she had two more seasons to run on a glittering career.

Sheree Starling, 48, coached Girgarre into the finals last season and stayed on as a player this year with the intention of contributing to the team’s continuing rise up the ladder.

She certainly did that, the Kangaroos completing a sensational season by shaking off the underdog status and beating Lancaster in Saturday’s grand final by three goals.

It was Starling’s third premiership and, under normal circumstances, would probably be enough reason to play on again in 2025.

There is, however, one overriding factor with her decision — her desire to play alongside her 13-year-old daughter Tayla.

She will be rising up to 50 when Tayla is back playing after the star teenager ruptured her ACL in Girgarre’s 15-and-under final in the first week of the KDL finals.

“The main reason I want to keep playing is to play with her. She had surgery on Monday and will miss next season, so I’ll have to look at playing at least another two seasons to get my wish,” Starling said.

That is not the only family connection to this sporting anecdote, as in opposing colours for Saturday’s grand final (playing for Lancaster), was Starling’s neice Cassie-Lee Westley.

She is actually the reason that I the veteran mid-court player landed at Girgarre in the first place.

“I grew up in Girgarre and played for them in the KNA (Kyabram Netball Association), but when I was about 14, they didn’t have a team in a high enough section for, so I played for St Augustine’s.

“Fast forward to 2014, and Cassie-Lee (the daughter of Starling’s older sister), begged me to coach her at Girgarre, so I did the job with Melissa Farrow.

“I loved coaching it and have been there ever since. Cassie-Lee went on to play with Kyabram and then followed her boyfriend to a couple of clubs (Lancaster being one of them).

“I tried to get her back at Girgarre last year without any luck,” Starling said.

Rewind to a teenager version of Starling (then Turpin, one of six sporting siblings from the well-known Girgarre family) and as a 16-year-old, she played three seasons alongside her highly decorated brother, Jeff, with then Heathcote league club Rushworth.

“When Jeff went back to Girgarre I followed. Rushworth had an influx of great players in the early 2000s, losing the grand final in 2002 and winning both 2003 and 2004.

“Because I was pregnant with my first child I was pretty happy to slip into retirement as they didn’t need me,” Starling said.

After watching the first game of the 2005 season (against Lancaster) from the sidelines, she caught the bug and was on the court the following week.

Rushworth won the flag again that year (Starling’s first premiership) and she was awarded best-on-court.

They lost the grand final to Lancaster the following year and rarely made finals, until Starling was a member of a second winning grand final with the Tigers in 2013.

She has been runner-up in the league medal on three occasions and received life membership at Rushworth in 2014.

Starling had a seven-year break before stepping back onto the court last year as playing coach of the A-grade side, and this year has worked in tandem with Holly Nelson in the mid-court to influence the Kangaroos arrival in the grand final for the first time.

Starling was named in an all-star Girgarre team only two years ago that also included Saturday’s grand final goal shooter Jacqui Gahan and coach of the C-reserve team Stacey Fletcher (nee McCarron).

At Girgarre, Starling has been a two-time best-and-fairest and was premiership coach of the 13-and-under team her twin children, Tayla and Kade, played in last season

She has mentored 11 junior teams between 2015 and 2019, with nine of these teams reaching the finals.

And is now a three-time KDL A-grade premiership player that can boast 19 seasons between her first and third grand final wins.

Certainly a CV that would be worthy of retirement, but there are still a couple of chapters to write — potentially alongside her daughter.

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Thursday, 1st August 2024

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