WHAT I KNOW
72 ELLE AUSTRALIA
As told to: Laura CollinsWHEN YOU’RE STARTING SOMETHING, IT’S GOOD TO HAVE LONG-TERM
GOALS. BUT THINGS CAN CHANGE QUICKLY, SO HAVING A POSITIVE
STATE OF MIND OFTEN COMES FROM SETTING AND ACHIEVING
SHORT-TERM GOALS. I started playing netball when I was
seven; my best friend at the time did so I naturally
joined. My mum was heavily involved in our local club- she still is, actually – so I feel like it was always going
to be a part of me. I’ve been around netball courts my
whole life. Making my first state team when I was 17
was probably the moment when I realised I wanted to
keep pushing myself further and turn it into a career.
I debuted for Australia at the end of 2013 so I was
really excited coming into the 2014 season. I played one
game of the ANZ Championship and then on the
following Thursday afternoon in training, my knee just
gave way. Instantly, I was out of the game for
12 months. I had surgery the following week and
spent every day for the next year in rehab. Every week
was a new challenge; that was my mentality. I’d set
myself a new goal to achieve that week, even one as
simple as standing on one leg. That short-term focus
was vital in helping pull me out
of a negative headspace.
EMBRACE EVERY CHALLENGE THAT
COMES YOUR WAY – YOU’LL BE BETTER
FOR IT IN THE END. I just graduated
university and have built an
incredible network of friends
who, along with my family,
provide something for me that’s
outside netball. A career in sportis not forever. You have a short life span – five, 10, 15
years. It does come to an end. Creating relationships
outside the game means I’ve got people to support me
when this journey is over. Of course, I’ve had to become
a very organised person being that, at one point, I was
at the gym six days a week and at university full-time.
With those kinds of demands, finding a balance
between the two was something I had to work on.
Coming off the back of my knee injury and
rehabilitation, I was part of the Australian Diamonds
team that won the 2015 Netball World Cup, and
having my family all there was the icing on the cake.
It was 18 months of chasing one goal.IT’S SCARY TO CONSIDER YOURSELF A ROLE MODEL, BUT I THINK
THAT’S THE WAY SPORTSPEOPLE HAVE TO BE AND I FEEL REALLY
PRIVILEGED TO BE PART OF THAT. I don’t love seeing girls get
injured, but when they reach out to me – as someone
who has been through it – I love being able to give back
to them and offer a little support and guidance. In
terms of the wider community, I think there are
obviously challenges to being a female athlete in terms
of the lack of financial support and publicity but, you
know, we play it because we love it. Netball is taking
small steps forward, which is really great for female
sport in general. But there are still challenges: do you
give up your sport to have a family or do you keep
playing [and possibly sacrifice that]? We don’t take
anything for granted. When you put on that green-and-
gold dress or you put on your club colours, you
appreciate what you’ve been given and what you’ve
achieved, and it’s still so exciting. qAustralian netballer Paige Hadley shares the wisdom she
lives by – including how she stayed positive after an injury
threatened to end her professional career“It’s good to have long-term goals.
But things can change quickly,
so having a positive state of mind
often comes from setting and
achieving short-term goals”
HADLEY ON THE COURT AT AGE 11