A few of us attended a lovely evening celebrating local grassroots sport at the BSGCA Sporting Excellence Awards on Thursday night. We were already feeling so proud just looking at the number of Dragons on the shortlist , but it made it extra special to come away with two big individual awards!

It was a beautiful night of recognition for our entire club family, as Dragons proudly received 7 nominations across all Categories. This included nods for Club of the Year , a fantastic triple-nomination for Team of the Year for our Flames, Ignite, and Flare teams , as well as individual nominations for Esme and Coach Ben. To be shortlisted alongside so many brilliant local sports Clubs is such a lovely achievement in itself, but being able to celebrate two of our own individual winners made the night truly special.

U18 Girls Sports Person of the Year: Meade Cooper
A massive congratulations to our Year 7 Eclipse player, Meade Cooper, who received this wonderful award. Meade is simply a joy to have in the club. Over the last two seasons, she has quietly become the true glue holding Team Eclipse together. While she is incredibly talented and versatile on the court, always happy to step into C, WA, or GA whenever needed, it is her kind heart that makes her stand out.

Meade is always the very first person to put an arm around a teammate who is hurt or having a tough day, always ready with a comforting smile or a joke to cheer them up. She cares so deeply about fairness that she’s regularly stepped off the court to make sure everyone else gets equal playing time. Her positive energy is so infectious that her teammates even use the phrase "Get your Meade on" to lift their spirits during tough games. Meade is moving on to join a performance club's U13 Regional Team soon, and while all her teammates and coaches will deeply miss her happy smile, we are all just so immensely proud to have been a part of her journey.

Volunteer Coach of the Year: Coach Elaine
The celebrations didn't stop there! We are very proud to share that the Volunteer Coach of the Year award went to our very own Coach Elaine.
As a founding member of the club, Elaine is a true driving force who brings boundless positive energy both courtside and behind the scenes. She quietly dedicates around 15 to 20 hours every single week to grassroots netball, whether it is coaching three of our junior squads, managing them on Sundays or dedicating her spare time to the essential admin and club logistics that usually go unseen, but are completely necessary to keep everything afloat. In addition, she acts as League Secretary for the 3 Counties Netball League (3CNL) and runs after-school netball sessions for Ashlyns and Thomas Coram.

Her firm, fun, and player-centric coaching style ensures that every single player, regardless of their level, feels valued, supported, and part of the team. Elaine completely embodies community volunteering, and her selflessness is the exact reason why grassroots netball in our community is thriving so beautifully. Elaine puts her whole heart into this club, and this trophy couldn't have gone to a more deserving person!
It was an inspiring evening that simply reminded us how fortunate we are to have such a wonderful community of people in our Dragons family.

Thank you to all our supporters, parents, coaches, volunteers, and most of all, to our players… without you, there wouldn’t be such a wonderful Dragons community