
By Tania Martin
ELEVEN Kilsyth Cobras are hoping to kick-start their basketball careers next year with a whirl-wind trip to the United States.
The under 18 girls team is now calling for help to raise cash for the trip.
The girls and their coach Will Van Popple will leave Australia on Christmas morning, 25 December, for a four day tournament in Alaska, before heading to Kentucky.
The Cobras will stay with local families, experiencing the thrill of living in another country while enjoying the game they love – basketball.
Team spokeswoman Kathy Wadsworth said the trip was a fantastic opportunity for the girls to experience high pressure basketball in extremely cold weather conditions.
“It’s an exciting venture with each of the girls and their families working hard to raise funds for the trip,” she said.
The girls will also play in Kentucky, and the USA in a six-day tournament.
But these rising stars can’t go to the USA without experiencing Disneyland so to round off the tournament they will visit the magical wonderland in a final stop over in Los Angeles.
Ms Wadsworth said the girls will then fly home in time to compete in an Australia Day tournament.
She said basketball means everything to this dedicated group of girls.
“Basketball is a passion for these girls and they often spend more than 8 hours training on a normal week,” she said.
“They also play three or four games a week each.”
The girls are now trying to raise as much cash as they can for the trip by having regular sausage sizzles, and chocolate drives.
They are also having a trivia night on 23 August at the York on Lilydale and tickets cost $20 per person with drinks available at bar prices.
Anyone interested in joining the night or helping to sponsor the girls should call Kathy on 0417 397 128.