Byford netballer has sights set on Pacific School Games

PROMISING netballer Jacinta Cooper has Adelaide in her sights after she was named in the State Under-12 Schoolgirls team.

The Byford resident will represent the state at the Pacific School Games, which involves states and territories from around Australia and teams from 14 other countries.

The defender plays for the Bletchley Park Netball Club and South East Demons in addition to her state team duties, which means she has a rigorous training schedule.

The job of driving her to training falls to her mother Renee, who also looks after Jacinta’s 15 year-old brother Jake, who has leukaemia.

Renee said she splits her time between helping both her children and they were already fundraising to help Jacinta get to Adelaide.

“With Jake, we’re nearly five years in and it’s chronic, so he needs a bone marrow transplant and he doesn’t have a match, so we do a lot of that sort of stuff as well,” she said.

“There’s only just three of us, so managing that as well is tough.

“All the support we can get to get her there is appreciated.”

To donate to Jacinta’s fundraising campaign, visit www.gofundme. com/jacinta-cooper-state-netball-team.