BFNL Open Representative Netball team withdraws from Association Championships Finals

The Bendigo Football Netball League (BFNL) wishes to advise that it will not be fielding an Open netball team at the 2025 Netball Victoria Association Championships to be played at Parkville.

This difficult decision follows a recently enforced Netball Victoria rule that restricts the involvement of individuals aligned with a Victorian Netball League (VNL) club. Given the number of BFNL players connected with VNL programs, the rule has significantly impacted the league’s ability to form a competitive Open team for the 2025 Association Championships.

Despite holding the Association Championships in high regard as a netball tournament, having the quantity and quality of players ineligible for selection has unfortunately resulted in the difficult decision to withdraw from the tournament.

The BFNL extends sincere thanks to Head Coach Tarryn Rymer and Assistant Coach Steph Freemantle for their time, leadership and commitment during the preparation phase. Both coaches played a significant role in engaging potential players in the early stages and despite this decision, their dedication to the program has not gone unrecognised.

The BFNL prides itself on having high caliber netballers, and we love seeing them compete on the big stage of VNL. We wish our players competing at VNL level, the best of luck for the remainder of the 2025 Season.

Excitingly, the BFNL 17 & Under Representative team is going strong and will compete at the Northern Netball Victoria Association Championships this Sunday in Bendigo where the winner will gain a spot in the 2025 Finals of the Netball Victoria Association Championships.

Good luck to all involved with the 17 & Under team!