Back from left: Casey Tiger Sharks female age champions, Jyssica Keen (14), Kirra Minton (open), Katie York (15), Alexandra Weston (13), Jemma Phillips (12), and front, Elise Corbett (8), Adrianna Grech (7), Olivia Raiti (11), Laura May (10) and Bridie Rogers (9).By Marc McGowan
THE Casey Tiger Sharks capped their “landmark” 2006-07 season with their annual awards night at Amstel Golf Club in Cranbourne on Friday night.
Freestyle king Trent Lindsey and breaststroke sensation Katie York (best senior male and female swimmer) and backstroke prospects Matthew Charlesworth and Jemma Phillips (best junior male and female swimmer) walked away as the big winners.
It has been an amazing calendar year for the Tiger Sharks as they have begun to make a serious imprint in both state and national swimming circles.
Casey has taken its state and national rankings from 31st and 220th respectively in 2004-05 to eighth and 55th last season.
And head coach Ben Hiddlestone is beaming with pride at his charges’ feats in the pool.
“It was kind of a landmark season for us, with real results – not just medals at encouragement events, but real results against clubs all over Australia,” he said.
“The biggest satisfaction is that we have not just won because we’ve had a genetically great kid walk in the door, because that one person cannot win you a team ranking.”
In a season of many highlights, 14-year-old stars Lindsey and Craig Watson emerged as the headline acts, with sublime performances at both state and national level.
Watson was the age champion at the Victorian Long Course Championships in January – just four points ahead of Lindsey – and reached three finals at April’s Australian Age Championships, including the club’s first at that standard in the 200m breaststroke.
Lindsey made two national finals of his own, and recorded the best overall finish by the Tiger Sharks with a stunning sub-two minute swim in the 200m freestyle on his way to a fourth placing.
Both have been named in the Victorian Target 2010 team that offers elite training and advice to swimmers regarded as Commonwealth Games contenders for that year’s competition in Delhi.
Brad York has also been selected in the Victorian Development Squad for his impressive effort to finish 14th in the 17-year-old 100m butterfly at the Australian Age Championships.
Hiddlestone has earmarked huge 2007-08 seasons for Charlesworth, who finished second in the 10-year-old 50m backstroke at the Australian Primary School Championships in Adelaide last week, and Phillips, and is looking for his female brigade to step up to the benchmark set by the males.
The master coach has set club ranking targets of sixth and 35th for Casey at next year’s state and national championships respectively.
A major stepping stone to those aims takes place next week with the Tiger Sharks’ third annual Hell Week.
“It goes for seven days from 2 to 8 July and involves two three-hour sessions a day,” Hiddlestone said.
“On the last day on Sunday, when they’re dead tired and exhausted, we’ll be taking them rock climbing for two-and-a-half hours in Seaford and then head straight back to the pool.”
