Selectors' eyes will be peeled for our up-and-coming boccia players at the 2009 National Championships in Whangarei.
The Northland Boccia Association is hosting the nationals this weekend at Kensington Stadium for the first time.
About 30 competitors from all corners of the country would be in action - including the New Zealand
elite team who contested the 2008 Paralympics and this year's Asia Pacific Games in Hong Kong - plus a couple of players from Australia, NBA president Michelle Batchelor said.
"A high performance coach is coming up with the elite team to watch players as they are looking at setting up a development squad, who could replace the elite teams when they retire."
Northland 13-year-old Alex Dickson was one of the promising players, who had the potential to make the development squad and qualify for a future Paralympics if he chose to follow that path, Batchelor said.
Earlier this year, Dickson won silver in his BC3 grade at the Northland Boccia Championships, also at Whangarei's Kensington Stadium, and would be looking to add a national title to his growing list of achievements, while Batchelor will defend her Kiwi Class national title she has claimed for the past two years.
"I'll be trying for my third, but there will be a fair bit of competition trying to take it off me judging from a few comments I've heard ... you never know with the elite team there," the president said.
"It really depends on what you do on the day and your attitude."
Batchelor, who has spina bifida, would love to go to the Paralympics, but only those players with more severe disabilities were eligible, she said.
While entrant numbers were not as high as what organisers had hoped for, it did not mean the quality of competition was down.
"There will be some fierce contests out there ... but all of the 11 Northland players taking part have the potential to do well," Batchelor said.
The nationals get under way tomorrow from 9am at Kensington Stadium and continue until Monday. Singles will be played tomorrow and Saturday, while teams' events will be contested on Sunday and Monday.
