Steel will be competitive, Heffernan says

Kate Heffernan’s form has remained consistent for the Silver Ferns and the Southern Steel through...
Kate Heffernan’s form has remained consistent for the Silver Ferns and the Southern Steel through a challenging year. PHOTO: MICHAEL BRADLEY PHOTOGRAPHY
After a challenging 12 months it would be easy for Kate Heffernan to dwell on the negatives, rather than flipping the script and finding the positives.

The Silver Ferns midcourter finished fourth at her first Netball World Cup, narrowly lost the Constellation Cup to Australia and finished third at the Nations Cup in January, where she picked up an Achilles niggle that has kept her sidelined through the preseason.

Pair that with being part of an agonising ANZ Premiership campaign with the Southern Steel in which they lost all 15 games last season — and extended their losing streak to 18 — and it makes for rough going.

But Heffernan’s approach to those times speaks to her resilience and ability to blossom in adversity.

She was vice-captain for the Nations Cup, alongside shooter Grace Nweke, and was rewarded for her performances by winning the inaugural Sandra Edge Medal for Silver Ferns player of the year last month.

"That was really special ... Sandra Edge is a legend," Heffernan said.

Heffernan, 24, continued to grow in her leadership style and took notes from Silver Ferns captain Phoenix Karaka at the Nations Cup around creating a player-led environment.

She hoped to bring that into the Steel this year as she took over the captaincy in her seventh season.

Leading the Steel was an honour, but Heffernan had been dealt a tough start watching from the sidelines — she is expected to start training in the next fortnight — and was looking forward to being able to lead out on court.

She offered plenty of encouragement from the bench during the Southern Showdown in Dunedin late last month.

It was a rough weekend for the Steel, who were beaten in every game and lost Jen O’Connell and Ivari Christie to concussion, but they were prepared to fix their issues ahead of their season opener on April 15.

"You learn more when you get those tough losses," Heffernan said.

"We know what we need to do in the next three weeks and hopefully we have a few more girls back out on court that are managing niggles."

kayla.hodge@alliedpress.co.nz