The new Kiwi club Te Whanau brought their A-game against The Rest of the World, but chairperson Pania Osbourne said it was all in the spirit of fun.

“As Kiwis in Mount Isa, because there are so many of us here, we want to share our Waitangi Day celebrations with the whole community,” Ms Osbourne said. 

“It gives a piece of Aotearoa to the outback,” she said.

Te Whanau, which means ‘the family’, boasts a full tribe of New Zealand women including many from long-standing club, Matariki.

“We have six teams this year, and we’re excited about our new season,” Ms Osbourne said.

The Waitangi Day exhibition match began in 2010 and has been been dominated by New Zealand for at least the last five years.

President of Mount Isa Netball Association Mel Allen says it’s a good chance to promote the game, too.

“The aim is to bring as many people as possible to the courts  to check out all the clubs on offer, and to show them where we are. We’re a little bit hidden out here at Wellington oval,” said Ms Allen.

The association’s sign up process has moved online this year, and with 10 clubs involved there are more than 60 teams for women to join.

Treasurer Barbara Baker umpired the game and helped organise the Rest of the World team, which was a bit low on numbers.

"It’s not a formed team as such, just girls that have come together to have a go,” said Ms Baker.

“We scored the first two or three goals at the beginning of the first quarter, then the Kiwis started to come back and take over the game,” said Ms Baker.

The family spirit was strong in both teams, even sharing players at one point.

“They ended up swapping some of their players with us so we could have some subs, so that was nice. They came to the party for us,” said Ms Baker.

"Unfortunately it was 9 o’clock in the morning and quite hot out there on the oval, so everybody was feeling that after the first quarter,” she said.

The region’s netball season starts officially in March, with time to sign up for those interested in playing.