The Northern Comets will be well represented when round 9 of the ANZ Premiership takes place this weekend.
Holly Mather, Tori Kolose, Summer Temu and Crystal Maro have been elevated to the elite level after impressing in the Synergy Hair National Netball League.
Comets coach Michelle Parsons is beaming with pride and excited to see them be given the opportunity to impress after working so hard.
Midcourters Mather and Kolose will join the Stars when they face the Steel and come in for Mila Reuleu-Buchanan and Gina Crampton.
Mather’s already made four appearances in the Stars dress this season and Parsons has seen her grow in confidence and back her skills.
“She’s got this really lovely link ability where it’s almost like where did she come from? She watches and scans and knows where she needs to be to balance her mates. Defensively she will get hand to ball and make sure she runs the line to be able to try and get a clean gain to turn the transition really quickly.” Parsons said.
Kolose has played in the ANZ Premiership for the Stars, Magic and Mystics and is in her second season since having a baby.
Parsons says Kolose’s one of the toughest people she knows.
“She is so resilient and will get hit almost every game and she will bounce up and play on and every week she will smile and work through it and do everything she can for her team. I think what I’m most proud of this season is she’s showing the immense speed and agility she has. We’re starting to see that confidence come back to just let the ball go and she knows instinctively where to be.”
Shooter Temu has already impressed at ANZ Premiership level when featuring for the Stars this season, but will find herself in an unfamiliar situation when she represents the Steel against the Stars.
Parsons has lauded the poise Temu’s shown at a young age.
“The ANZ Premiership can be a rough environment in the sense that you’re under pressure the whole time to perform, especially as a shooter and you have to put those goals up for your team to win. She just looks so calm, unflustered and physically a presence.”
Maro will bolster the Pulse’s shooting end for the second straight week when they face the Mystics on Monday.
Parsons believes Maro is an extremely intelligent player.
“I don’t think people understand how clever she is and what I’m excited about is people at this level get to see these real subtleties with her timing and how she plays the ball. Defence at training hate marking her, because at one point she will make you look like an egg because she’s so smart.”
The foursome join a long list of former Comets players who are excelling among the current crop of ANZ Premiership talent.
Amelia Walmsley at the Pulse, Greer Sinclair at the Tactix, Filda Vui with the Mystics, Oceane Maihi and Evana Rowland at the Magic and the Stars’ recent graduates Lili Tokaduadua and Khanyè-Lii Munro-Nonoa, are present examples of players who plied their trade in the purple Comets dress.
Parsons pinpoints the importance of being connected to representing the South Auckland region and looking to be better every time they take to the court as the ethos behind the Comets.
“I think that’s the wonderful genuineness, they live here and there’s a real heart to what they do. I think when you’re in our environment and you see them together, we laugh a lot, we spend a lot of time enjoying what we’re doing, but we do that because we enjoy working hard.” Parsons explains.
There’s a real sense of loyalty that sits in that purple space for our girls. Our four values we have in our environment is it’s safe to be here, safe to question, safe to learn and safe to challenge. I’m hoping the girls love being here and see value in the commitment because it’s a long time spent in netball and if you’re not enjoying it then we’re doing something wrong.”
