Hong Kong glory for Shoalhaven products

So when four of Shoalhaven’s top junior rugby stars were selected to represent the Illawarra at the All Girls Rugby Tournament, the world’s largest female youth rugby tournament, it was a massive achievement in itself.

But two of the girls, Nowra Hill’s Ruari von Prott and Worrigee’s Libby Randall, made the 2018 competition even more memorable.

These two were part of the victorious Illawarra side that took out the under 19s competition, which ran from March 30-31.

Illawarra won all four games on day one, defeating Sai Kung Stingrays, Haggan Graham A, Gai Wu and Flying Kukris

Then on day two, they defeated Sandy Bay before edging out Haggan Graham B in the semi-final, qualifying them for the final.

Going into the decider against Stingrays, von Prott was confident in her team’s ability.

“We played a real game of sevens in the final – it was fast, intense and a real thriller of a game to watch,” she said.

“We fell behind 12-nil early but behind three unanswered tries, we managed to win 15-12.

“When the final whistle blew, I had this feeling that can’t ever be described.

“Knowing you gave it everything you have with your best friends and family beside you – that’s why I play sport.

“The feeling is unbelievable and if you haven’t experienced it, you’re really missing out.

“It’s something I’ll always remember – it’s the best feeling.”

Despite having a number of exceptional results on the field, von Prott ranks this as the highest yet.

“Being captain and leading the team to victory at such a high level is almost unimaginable,” she said.

“Keeping the girls high spirited and giving them talks to rally them up before games, I couldn’t of asked for anything more – it was a dream come true.

“As a team, this wasn’t our first rodeo and hopefully not our last.

“Being together with them for so long and working so hard to achieve something as a team is much more satisfying than doing it alone.”

The other two Shoalhaven representatives in Hong Kong were Cambewarra's Aroha Spillane and Ulladulla’s Grace Hamilton, who helped the Illawarra under 16s team to fourth spot.

Illawarra u19s squad: Margot Vella, Molly Kennedy, Libby Randall, Hannah Crisp, Ruari von Prott ©, Nicola Robinson, Mykayla Crisp and Abbey Holmes.