GEMMA Meadley has taken a major leap in her netball journey, earning herself a spot in the Victorian 17 and Under state team, and returning from the National Championships with bronze.
“Vic only lost one game prior to finals (to SA, the gold medal winners),” said Gemma.
“During the semi-final against NSW, the game went to overtime twice, with NSW coming away with the win. Vic U17’s finished Bronze, and we were very happy to get a medal after our hard work.”
Victorian 17/U state team head coach, Jacinta Todd, said, Gemma has an ability to get so much hand to ball, from rebounds, to tips, to clean intercepts. Some balls you sit there wondering how she did it - her work rate in this is high, so no surprise she gets lots.
“Gemma has grabbed it with two hands and has been a great role model in this area. A lot of the high-performance behaviours centre down to being organised, and as an athlete who travels a fair distance, she needs to be so has really done well in this space,” said Jacinta.
“Consistency is the key when you think of Gemma. She has had a great training phase, in terms of not only pushing herself but others as well and on top of this wants to learn and thrives off feedback.”
Gemma is completing state training two to three days per week, including court, gym and conditioning. “The training was tailored around each athlete's existing load with Victorian Netball League training and games, where state training took priority.
“My training now is VNL training on Monday, with games mostly on Wednesdays at Parkville, Parrots training on Thursdays and Parrots games on Saturdays,” said Gemma.
With this level of training, Gemma said she tries to balance everything out as much as possible, but in the end, prioritises school when she can around training.
“Getting into the team was monumental for me, as last year I was a training partner and wanted to push myself and get a spot in the team. I was so happy when I got in because I had put in a lot of effort that year to improve my fitness and game, so it was very rewarding getting the email that I was in.”
At Nationals, Gemma was looking forward to the South Australia game, as she had played them twice earlier in the year at the Gippsland showcase, where her team had beaten them twice.
I also thought it would be a great challenge for the team and me, given that we knew they would have improved and that they would come out firing, so we had to meet them there. Unfortunately, we lost, but I feel like it was a great team effort to play against the top team from last year and only lose by two.
When it came to high-stakes games, Gemma stayed grounded by focusing on the basics.
“I try to remember to breathe and focus on the game and what I can control, rather than feeding into the intensity,” said Gemma.
“I didn’t give much thought to it being my first year, I just tried to play my hardest and focus on the result I was trying to achieve. I also found encouraging others helps me maintain my focus during high-intensity games, which also helps others by uplifting them and giving them confidence.”
With Nationals behind her, Gemma Meadley remains a name to watch in the Victorian netball circles, her relentless drive, composure under pressure and team-first mindset point to a bright future on and off the court.
Gemma has since been selected for the Australian U17 squad.