'At what age did you decide you wanted to be a hockey player and why?'

 

‘I started off as soon as I could in primary school, St Joseph’s in Takapuna, in those days netball and hockey were the only sports available to girls. I had two older sisters who were hockey players, I looked up to them and I wanted to follow in their footsteps. I started a year before hockey started at St Josephs and played for Forest Hill School in a team called The Pinketts’.

 

 

 

'Was playing hockey your first choice of career?'

 

‘I never really considered it as a career option; I still have a full time job. I originally wanted to be a police officer. A famous hockey player Tina Bell came to our school and gave a talk about being a successful international hockey player. She was an inspirational figure to me.’

 

 

 

'Who has been your greatest influence professionally on your hockey career and why?'

 

‘I was about 13 when I started playing for the Hibiscus Dairy Flat Premier women’s team, our whole team were really young. Our coach Bronwyn Rees, who is still coaching today, was my most influential coach and mentor figure, she taught me a heck of a lot and with her encouragement and advice over a decade, she was the most influential figure’.

 

 

 

'How important have your friends and family been in terms of realising your dreams?'

 

‘Good question; family is the most important thing.  I have got a very sporty family, I am the youngest of six kids, so I have always been looking up to my older brothers and sisters and wanting to be like them. If you are an older brother or sister, it is really important that your baby brothers and sisters are looking up to you to lead the way. Probably for me the most influential person was my father who was very competitive, but  always supportive, he was a real hard task master I had to earn every pat on the back, but he was very supportive, always at games and always had the gear I needed.‘

 

 

 

'What three attributes do you think you require in order to succeed in today’s competitive world of hockey?'

 

‘There is a lot that goes into making a complete hockey player. To succeed and this is probably not specific to hockey but to any sport, there has to be an absolute determination to do well. There needs to be a real commitment and persistence to what you are doing, and huge attention to detail because as soon as you step out of national sports into International level, attention to detail be it in the training ethic, coach’s plan, that 1% can make all the difference at International level. So attention to detail, perseverance, commitment and effort to succeed at International level’.

 

 

 

'What one piece of advice would you give to a young person who is embarking upon a new career path?'

 

‘Firstly you need to find something that you are passionate and enthusiastic about, then you need to identify early on what it is you want to achieve, what is your goal. Once you have your goal in place you need to think about which steps to take in order to achieve that goal. So you have an overall picture of your career path and look at what I need to do next. You need to break it right down and come to day-to-day decisions that will lead you on your path or let you go astray. This applies to pretty much everything in life’.

 

 

 

'Can you describe the most defining moment of your hockey career?'

 

‘The London Olympics has been a huge highlight for me and the pinnacle to date. Even though we came 4th and missed out on a medal, I do have a few regrets. Even though it was a highlight it was also one of the low lights too’.

 

 

 

'What does an average training routine involve/require and how often do you train and when you do how long for?'

 

‘We have got three types of training that we do. There is the hockey specific training, which is usually done in a team. I also do some individual sessions, with the NZ team with specific coaches.’ the strikers do very specific skill based training. It could be a team session, which is more interrelational but still skill based with the players around you. Then there is all of the gym work three times a week on weights and movement, to make sure the body is well balanced and well conditioned. This also takes care of any ligament injuries. Then I also do aerobics three days a week. I don’t run at all due to knee injuries, I do lots of cycling. I take one rest day a week. At the Olympics I would have a rest day after competing as some of the tournaments could go on for two weeks. ‘

 

 

 

What did you have to sacrifice in order for your hockey career to survive?

 

‘I have always been sporty, even at college I would be playing basketball, volleyball, rowing even cricket. In the end I didn’t have time for all of those sports. I gave up most of them in favour of hockey. I still do equestrian sports and still cycle and kayak. I haven’t really been able to pursue a career outside of work and needed to take so much time off. I had to give up a managerial position. Socially I had to make sacrifices, no late nights out, drinking, friends need to understand and good friends do and respect my choices.’

 

 

 

'How important was your team in ensuring the success of your hockey career?'

 

‘My team, everything, there is no ‘I’ in team. Very important in the Olympic tournament, my defenders played the best hockey I have ever seen them play and without them I would have been left with nothing, they were helping me out all of the time. You can play really well but if you haven’t got good people around you, you are not going to win games. One of the things I love about team sports is that although there is a need to be the best you can be, its also a requirement to stick to the game plan, listen to the coach and work with other players. The really great thing about teams is adding together all of the individual attributes of each player and then creating a great team.’

 

 

 

'What difficulties have you overcome in order to succeed?'

 

‘That is a pretty pertinent question for me as I have had challenges along the way. The hardest two things are injury and non-selection. Injury has been hard I have had double knee surgery and further knee surgery and numerous breaks and injuries over the years. This has prevented me from competing in the States. The second challenge is overcoming non-selection, in 2008 with the Beijing Olympics. Not being selected tore me up, as I actually believed I could go. At that time my father had been battling cancer and he was waiting to see if I would make selection, he died soon after that. Soon after I played the 2008 National league with a horrible back injury and just one week after my father’s funeral. I ended up getting player of the tournament and we won the league. Two years later I decided to train for the Commonwealth games and again I didn’t make selection as NZ decided to only take one team instead of two. Ultimately I persevered and made it to the 2012 Olympics. Even after suffering a bout of meningitis from trekking in Argentina’

 

 

 

'What is the greatest challenge you have faced and how did you overcome this?'

 

‘The biggest challenge was the non-selection for Beijing and Delhi and then having the courage to make the choice to carry on. This was not an easy choice, especially with all of the self-doubt. I just focused on the process, the day to day training and remembering to enjoy the journey, the opportunities and experiences I have been given and keeping things in perspective’.

 

 

 

'In your own words, what is the key to success?'

 

‘ Consistency and determination to succeed, secondly being able to understand little things and the day-to-day choices. Diligence to your training plan, listening to your coach’s, looking after your body, accepting information, and being willing to go out of your comfort zone to become a better player. ‘