The Gilley’s Shield will be up for grabs when the 73^rd Women’s National Championships hit Mirrabooka, WA from the 4^th – 10^th January.

Head Coach Mark Rigg said the Titans have enjoyed the lead-up to the competition and have worked hard to ensure they’re at their peak when they take to the diamond next week.

“Our main focus is to compete well in every game, our preparation has been great. Training three times a week is tough at times – but this year has been easy because everyone’s switched on and enjoying every minute of it.” Rigg said.

“Our aim is to finish in the top two, our Victorian girls have trained their backsides off and have really stepped up to the plate.”

“We’ve been super impressed with their progression and we feel like we’ve come along nicely,” he added.

Co-Captain’s Marina Walker and Sarah Tutchener will lead the Titans, with Rigg revealing that a strong and connected culture is something that’s been a major focus for the team.

“We have co-captains this year with Marina Walker and Sarah Tutchener. We have done a lot of work on building culture this year, our culture and values is something we take very seriously, and we review it after every training session.” Rigg said.

“Marina and ‘Tutch’ have both been around our program for a very long-time, they bring not only leadership with their playing, but also around the group. They’re friendly faces who are happy to help and interpret game-plans and are awesome to have around.”

“We can’t wait to get to Perth and give our game-plan a run. Especially being an Olympic year, with Olympic selection – and a number of international players coming – it’s going to be the hottest Gilley Shield in a decade.”

Marina Walker is coming off a strong Peta Edebone Cup (PEC) campaign, and said she hopes to carry that strong form into Nationals.

“Following the Peta Edebone Cup, it was nice to finish with a positive heading into nationals. I have the confidence behind me knowing I’m playing well and going forward from there,” Walker said.

“We had a few Titans players in the (PEC) all-star team, we have a fresh team this year, a good mix of younger players and experienced players. It’s an exciting combo – we have a quick, fast team – which we’re looking to use to our advantage this year.”

“We have picked up some amazing international players, some great ACT players, we have a well-rounded team, we really want to compete this year and bring the (Gilley’s Shield) back home.”

Echoing the confidence of Rigg and Walker is centerfield – Milli Mercuri, who feels the team is prepared to showcase their strengths against the best players in the country.

“Mark and Corey (Dimitrijevic) have done really well in the team’s preparation to work on the skills that we lacked last year, and make them into strengths,” Mercuri said.

“The team gels really well, we have a few new players this year, and I’m excited to go play and work hard.”

Access all the Gilley’s Shield resources HERE.

Read our team announcement article HERE.

Stay tuned to Softball Victoria’s website and associated social media channels for Titans updates throughout the tournament.