The winners of the most coveted award in the League and Reserves divisions of The Hospital Research Foundation Group Premier League competition have been revealed, along with the Rookie of the Year.
Emily Burgess from the Garville Netball Club has been crowned the Most Valuable Player of the League division, while Kayla Howes is MVP for the Reserves.
Another Oakdale young gun took out Rookie of the Year, with 16-year-old mid-courter/defender Poppy Scholz winning the award.
An ultra-experienced player, Burgess was a valuable addition to Garville in 2023 and led the way consistently.
It has been quite the journey for the Wing-Defence and Thunderbird #72, who crossed from Matrics at the end of 2022 and has undergone two knee reconstructions in her career.
She has also had stints with the NSW Swifts as a training partner, and Northern Mystics in the ANZ Championship in New Zealand.
A strong goal shooter, Howes showed immense improvement in 2023 and proved a key target in attack.
Across 15 games she recorded 592 goals - 192 more than the second-best scorer - and 705 assists - 194 ahead of the next player.
Scholz burst onto the scene in the League Division in 2023, playing 13 out of a possible 14 games after making her debut in round one.
She was also selected in the South Australian U/17 side that travelled to Darwin in April this year and was named captain of the team.
The trio received their awards and pins at the Netball SA Awards Gala on Friday, September 29.
