While hardly a revelation for the booming club, who can boast two boys national championships in the past two seasons; there is some noise starting to emerge from the girls side, as the under 18s qualified for the state’s most prestigious competition with three comprehensive wins in phase two of grading.

The Elias Palioyiannis coached team were the standout performers in the high pressure post-Christmas grading phase, after narrowly missing out on a chance to set Falcons girls history by qualifying before the break.

The Falcons’ up tempo style of game saw them dismantle an awe-struck Craigieburn outfit, before taking out a gritty win against fellow qualifiers Bulleen 2. With only a victory against Eltham 2 separating the Falcons from the nationally recognised Championship division, a typically business-like performance left the Wildcat’s declawed, and booked the Falcons a place in VC for the first time since 2007.

While the hard work and dedication of the last six months have been vital to the team’s success to this point, it is clear that the ground work for this season had been put in years earlier. With the entire team having played in the VJL 1 division or higher in previous seasons, the added poise that comes with the experience of playing at a high level was evident, as the Falcons showed they are capable of competing against the state’s best teams.

Team Manager Fran Ioannidis, in a statement made to the Waverley Basketball Association, attributed the groundbreaking achievement to “the hard work and dedication of the players and coaches during an arduous preseason.”

“After narrowly missing out on playing at the highest level on a weekly basis the last two seasons, this is a great achievement for the team” Ioannidis added.

While the Falcons have excelled in the boys section of VC in recent years, the girls competition has proved a much tougher hunting ground for the club, which fields just nine girls teams across five age groups. It appears however, that the current group are determined to earn the club some respect on the state’s biggest stage.

As the Victoria’s best under 18 girls teams gear up for tip off in season 2010 after a gruelling six months of grading, one constant remains clear: with hard work and perseverance, the sky is truly the limit.

The Falcons are ready to take flight.