Golden girl Liana Leota has a swag of awards and medals safely tucked away but there is still room for more.
The classy Steel wing attack won a gold medal with the Silver Ferns at the Commonwealth Games in India last year, and in 2005 she was part of a talented New Zealand team that won the world youth championships in Miami.
Last season, Leota (nee Barrett-Chase) was named the ANZ Championship player of the tournament and ticked off another major life achievement when she married her long-term partner, former Highlanders rugby player Johnny Leota, in Rarotonga on November 20.
She packed a lot into the last 12 months and has big plans for the coming year.
A gold medal at the world championships in Singapore in July would complete the set and an ANZ Championship title would be the "icing on top".
The Steel has made the playoffs for the past two seasons but changes to key personnel and some poor performances during the annual pre-season tournament in Queenstown have created cause for concern. But the Steel co-captain remains optimistic and believes the Invercargill-based franchise is capable of reaching the final.
"For most of the experienced players, fourth isn't acceptable anymore," Leota said.
"It might have been good enough during the first two years of the tournament but now fourth is like, well, you may as well come last.
"I know personally I want to look for a top-two finish. We should be up there. We have a great team - it is just about putting it out on the court. And Robbie [Steel coach Robyn Broughton] deserves it."
In some ways the Steel squad will be stronger than the side which was eliminated by the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic in the semifinal.
The arrival of former Australian international Natasha Chokljat gives the Steel midcourt a more dynamic look. The Steel struggled with the exchanges in the centre court but the decision to use the import slot to bolster that area meant there was no room for experienced shooter Megan Dehn.
The Steel gambled on the Australian gaining New Zealand citizenship but she ran into difficulties and will instead suit up for the Northern Mystics.
Former Silver Ferns shooter Paula Griffin has transferred south from the Central Pulse and will partner Daneka Wipiiti in the shooting circle. It is an untried combination and the Steel's prospects will, to a large degree, hinge on how the pair gel.
Former Silver Ferns shooter Tania Dalton has been called into the squad as cover for Wipiiti, who picked up an ankle injury in the pre-season. Heaven forbid injury sidelining Wipiiti or Griffin for any significant period.
Back-up shooters Te Paea Selby-Rickit and Sophia Fenwick are promising youngsters but very green, and Dalton has not played top-level netball since 2006, although she was called into the Steel squad as cover in 2008 and has been playing club netball in Auckland.
Leota is well aware the opposition will target the Steel's attack end and she has taken on the responsibility of making sure the Steel's new-look circle functions as it should.
She is determined it will not be an Achilles' heel.
"I have a really good combination with Daneka. We've been playing together for some many years and we know each other's game inside out. But with two new players [Chokljat at centre and Griffin at goal attack] you have to take time to get used to it.
"That will be my job, to make sure we all link well and work well as an attacking end. But I think, with it all being so new, we will have to work on it."
As for the two teenage back-up shooters, Leota is confident they have the ability to succeed.
"They have really stepped up over the Christmas period. They have been training hard, so that's a positive.
"The more they play the more they will grow. Te Paea and Sophia are great athletes and they just need to be given a chance and the confidence will come."
Leota, who has played in all 41 of the Steel's games, will probably come in for some extra attention herself. She was the model of consistency last season and a standout performer for the Steel.
But if the opposition can crowd her, they can reduce the amount of ball Wipiiti gets to work with.
"Hopefully, if I am [a marked player], I'll rise to the occasion. But I like it when people want to compete with me.
"I have huge pressure on myself to perform, especially being co-captain. You have to lift the bar."
ANZ CHAMPIONSHIP
- The contenders
Adelaide Thunderbirds
• Last year: Champions.
• Coach: Jane Woodlands-Thompson (fourth season).
• Key players: Leading shooter Carla Borrego and speedy centre Natalie von Bertouch.
• Question mark: Classy defenders Mo'onia Gerrard and Geva Mentor have shifted camps, leaving a crater-sized gap at the back.
Melbourne Vixens
• Last year: Seventh.
• Coach: Julie Hoornweg (fourth season).
• Key players: Competitive goal attack Sharelle McMahon and new defender Geva Mentor.
• Question mark: A run of seven losses last season may have left a lasting dent in the morale.
New South Wales Swifts
• Last year: Third.
• Coach: Julie Fitzgerald (fourth season).
• Key players: Experienced shooter Catherine Cox and defender Rebecca Bulley.
• Question mark: Only lost two games last year but they were both in the finals.
Queensland Firebirds
• Last year: Fifth.
• Coach: Roselee Jencke (second season).
• Key players: Towering Jamaican shooter Romelda Aiken and under-rated centre Lauren Nourse.
• Question mark: Look well-placed to make the playoffs but struggle against fellow Australian teams.
West Coast Fever
• Last year: Eighth.
• Coach: Jane Searle (third season).
• Key players: Shooter Caitlin Bassett and England defender Ama Agbeze.
• Question mark: Travel has been a big factor preventing this young side going further.
Southern Steel
• Last year: Fourth.
• Coach: Robyn Broughton (fourth season).
• Key players: Back-up Silver Ferns shooter Daneka Wipiiti and busy wing attack Liana Leota.
• Question mark: The bench looks green and inexperienced. The Steel's depth was sorely exposed during the pre-season.
Canterbury Tactix
• Last year: Last.
• Coach: Helen Mahon-Stroud (fourth season).
• Key players: Former Silver Ferns duo shooter Donna Wilkins and midcourt maestro Maree Bowden.
• Question mark: The Tactix lack some of the firepower of the other teams.
Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic
•Last year: Second.
• Coach: Noeline Taurua (fourth season).
• Key players: The world's two best players, shooter Irene van Dyk and defender Casey Williams.
• Question mark: Key players in crucial areas but the Magic does not have the depth of talent it has had in past seasons.
Northern Mystics
• Last year: Sixth
• Coach: Debbie Fuller (replaces Te Aroha Keenan).
• Key players: Accurate shooter Cathrine Latu and experienced centre Temepara George.
• Question mark: Perennial underachievers. Losing is a hard habit to break but expect better results this season.
Central Pulse
• Last year: Ninth
• Coach: Yvette McCausland-Durie (third season).
• Key Players: Silver Ferns defender Katrina Grant and former Vixens shooter Caitlin Thwaites.
• Question mark: A much better mix this season but still too many pieces missing.
