By Renae Smyth
After spending time in Townsville with the Northern Mendi Rays, Ema and Matila headed to Brisbane to join the Queensland Sapphires as they prepared for the new-look Australian Netball Championships set to take place in Victoria's Latrobe Valley.
However, despite efforts behind the scenes by Netball Australia and its Member Organisations to navigate the evolving coronavirus restrictions, it was decided a decentralised format would give emerging talent the best chance of taking the court in 2021.
With the tournament not going ahead as planned, it opened the door to an eight-match mini-series between the Queensland Sapphires, Sunshine Coast Lightning, the Queensland Suns and a PacificAus Sports team.
With support from the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ema and Matila were joined by seven Queensland-based Pasifika athletes and four training partners from the Queensland Sapphires to take part in the Born to Shine Series.
Matches were played over six days on the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and Toowoomba, giving the 2019 Netball World Cup teammates a chance to build on their experience within Australia’s high-performance environment.
With little time to prepare, PacificAus Sports Head Coach Jenny Brazel felt the side gave it all they had as they came away with fourth place.
“It was all about bringing the girls together. We were taking the learnings from each game and worked on being better each game, building connections and enjoying the opportunity to test ourselves against the much more experienced teams,” Brazel said.
“It was wonderful to see how much the girls enjoyed the opportunity, to see how they embraced each other.
“The homegrown Queensland girls took the opportunity to learn more about Ema and Matila, about their culture and being so inclusive. We were also able to introduce both of the girls to all the great rituals and fun of being in a team in Australia.”
Ema Mualuvu (left) and Matila Vocea (right) pictured with PacificAus Sports Head Coach Jenny Brazel at USC Stadium.Having worked with Ema and Matila as part of the national team, the former Fiji Pearls head coach was thrilled to see them step out of their comfort zone and move to Australia to take part in the athlete immersion program.
“I have seen both the girls enjoy life both on and off the court. They have a much greater understanding of what is required of an athlete to be successful in a high-performance program," Brazel said.
“They have both learnt about nutrition, more about the importance of fitness – with greater preparation around prehab and recovery."
Whilst on the road to Toowoomba, Ema and Matila stopped in at Western Districts Netball Association for Netball Queensland’s 2021 Connecting Through Sports Gala Day with Milperra State School and Islamic College of Brisbane.
Brazel was delighted to see the Fijian pair taking advantage of the experience, both on and off the court.
“Off the court they have increased their confidence by soaking up the Australia culture, connecting with a wide cross section of people and engaging in many different experiences,” Brazel said.
Match results
Game 1: Queensland Suns 67 vs PacificAus Sports 31
Game 2: PacificAus Sports 33 vs Queensland Sapphires 62
Game 3: Sunshine Coast Lightning 53 vs PacificAus Sports 29
Game 4: Queensland Suns 80 vs PacificAus Sports 36
PacificAus Sports Squad:
- Aleesha Adams-Te Haara (New Zealand)
- Sopolemalama Alsop Tuitama (Samoa)
- Lily Cubby (Queensland Sapphires Training Partner)
- Keshia Grant (New Zealand)
- Lily Gribble (Queensland Sapphires Training Partner)
- Abigail Houston (Queensland Sapphires Training Partner)
- Larika Malagaoma (Samoa)
- Alice Mauga (Samoa & Queensland Sapphires Training Partner)
- Ema Mualuvu (Fiji)
- Losa Niumata (Samoa)
- Monique Piunti (Queensland Sapphires Training Partner)
- Natasha Robinson (New Zealand & Queensland Sapphires Training Partner)
- Matila Vocea (Fiji)
Coaching & Support Staff:
- Jenny Brazel - Head Coach
- Lenora Misa - Assistant Coach (Samoa)
- Emma Wakefield - Team Manager
- Brandon Marangelli - Performance Analyst
- Daniel Evans - Physio
