Dunedin goal attack Shanti Kara in action during the national under-18 tournament in Christchurch. PHOTO: MICHAEL BRADLEY PHOTOGRAPHY Dunedin rounded out a strong week at the national under-18 championships with a top-four finish. The team finished fourth after being pipped 45-43 by Manawatū in the third-fourth playoff in Christchurch yesterday. Earlier, they slipped to a 44-33 loss to Wellington Black in the semifinal. Waitākere 1 came from behind to beat Wellington Black 37-35 to claim the title for a second consecutive year. They had a seven-goal unanswered run through the middle to set up the win. Dunedin, coached by former Silver Fern Belinda Colling, went through the tournament unbeaten until the semifinals. It was another strong tournament for Dunedin’s rising netballers — some of whom were away with the national secondary schools side last week — after finishing runners-up last year. They had strong victories over Auckland 2 (44-26) and Te Tai Poutini (55-13) on the opening day. They were followed by wins over Invercargill (45-31) and North Harbour B (53-25). They also beat Rotorua 33-28, and beat Auckland 1 49-35 in the quarterfinal. Invercargill finished 25th after beating North Harbour B 37-35, and Central Lakes finished 31st after beating South Canterbury 40-23. North Otago finished 37th after beating Eastern Southland 43-23. The Invercargill men’s team finished third at their under-18 tournament, which ran concurrently with the women. Howick Pakuranga beat Waitākere 34-25 in the final.
