To say Sutherland Stingray Natalie Sligar is juggling a lot at the moment would be an understatement.
The Camden junior, who is also part of the NSW State Team setup and GIANTS Netball Academy, has never been one to shirk away from a challenge but balancing university and high-performance sport is a big ask for even the toughest.
You need to be comfortable in your surrounds to succeed and, luckily Sligar, is loving her time at the Stingrays.
2021 will be her fourth season in the Origin Energy Premier League, and third with the Sutherland franchise. So, what is it about the Shire that she loves so much?
“I love playing with the Stingrays, we have a great culture within the group, and we aim to continue to build on the proud history of the Sutherland Association,” she says.
“Club loyalty provides the foundation for the development of connections and success on court and therefore is very important to me.”
Netball NSW 2020 Coach of the Year Maria Lynch is at the helm of the Stingrays Opens and Sligar says being challenged at every session is something she’s really embracing.
“Maria has a wealth of knowledge and experience. Her understanding of the game is second to none and I value her analytical and tactical perspective on the game.
“At training, Maria’s drills are always purposeful and I’m sure the team will agree with me when I say that I have a love-hate relationship with her intricate footwork patterns.
“My favourite part of training with Maria is that she is always challenging and pushing us to be better netballers.”
While last year’s pre-season was a hard slog remotely, 2021 is proving to be much more enjoyable and the Stingrays are embracing the scientific side of pathways sport.
“It was great to get a proper pre-season in, given the COVID affected one we had last year,” Sligar adds.
“We were able to work on court, in specialist sessions as well as match play against the NSW Men’s U20s and other Premier League teams.
“It was also very exciting to be able to use data from biomechanical testing, thanks to the team from the Biomechanics Research Lab at the University of Wollongong in our pre-season strength and conditioning.
“This data identified strengths and weaknesses for us to focus on.”
And that’s not the only University she’s been around recently. Sligar has been balancing university studies alongside commitments to Premier League, GIANTS Netball Academy and the NSW State Team setup.
Luckily, she’s finding the support she needs.
“We’re very fortunate that Jenny O’Keeffe as the Assistant Coach of GIANTS and Program Manager of the Academy, works closely with us as well as the coaches of the various programs to ensure we’re not overloaded and minimise fatigue.
“To juggle time between programs, it’s all about communication within and between programs.
“I’m also currently studying a Bachelor of Science (Health) at the University of Sydney. It certainly keeps me busy, but I really enjoy studying and use it as a way to switch off from netball.
“To stay on top of everything, I plan ahead and create a schedule setting aside time for netball, work, uni and some personal downtime. In this way, the calendar on my phone and weekly schedule become my best friend!”
Sisters in netball isn’t new – think the Brownes – but twin sisters aren’t as common. Natalie’s twin Amy is also a pathway athlete, playing for UTS Randwick Sparks. So, does this create any tension at home or when mum and dad are on the sidelines?
“On court we will both go about things as we would in any other game, but there certainly has been some banter around the house.”
“We’re both super competitive so it’ll be good fun to come up against each other (and even more fun to beat her team).” (UTS Randwick Sparks def Sutherland Stingrays in Round 2, 53-36).
“Mum and dad are great supporters of both Amy and I. As much as I’d love to say they’ll cheer for Stingrays, I think they’ll have both colours on and be cheering for Stingrays and UTS.”
There’s a long season ahead, but something tells you Mr and Mrs Sligar will have plenty to cheer about in the seasons ahead.
