Claire McGuirk hopes to put a recent bout of sickness behind her in the best possible way by winning the under-17 national indoor cricket championship.
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The 15-year-old, the reigning Gunnedah junior female sportsperson of the year, will line up for NSW Country Cyclones when the junior phase of the championships commence at Casey Stadium, Melbourne, on Saturday.
She will be joined in Melbourne by another Gunnedah player Zac Clarke, who will represent the under-15 Cyclones.
McGuirk, who represented ACT/NSW Country at the outdoor cricket nationals this year, has played at three previous indoor cricket nationals - reaching the final one year.
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Her hectic sporting schedule was interrupted recently by a chest infection and an asthma flare-up.
But she said she was back to full health and was "hopeful" the Cyclones could go all the way.
"That's our approach [to win it]," she said, adding: "I got sick a couple of weeks ago, so that was my break [from sport] ... I'm all good now."
The Cyclones will be captain by Tamworth's Lara Graham, and will feature another Tamworth player, Tara Craig. The side is coached by West Tamworth's Shawn Mepham.
Tara's brother, Zac, is in the Cylone's under-15 side, while the other Tamworth players in the championships are Harry Lewington and Mitch Duddy (both under-13s).