Suiting up for the Stars during the 2024 ANZ Premiership season wasn’t high on the probability scale for Monica Falkner at the start of the 2024
In December the shooter welcomed her daughter Riley into the world and just four months later was back playing club netball.
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She received a call out of the blue from Stars coach Kiri Wills two weeks into the season, with injuries hitting the squad.
“It all happened quite quickly. I got a call from Kiri in the middle of the week and she was asking how I was doing, how my training was going and how I thought I’d go if I was to come into the Stars environment.” said Falkner.
I was like honestly; I’ve been playing club netball and just taking it easy and realistically I’m not super fit as my baby’s only four months old.”
“She asked me to come to training and it was pretty hard, but I felt ok and since then and it’s just gotten easier each week.”
Falkner joined the Stars ahead of their round three match against the Magic and played 17 minutes in her first outing in the Stars dress since the 2021 season.
“Trying to play netball less fit than I normally am has been quite hard. Kiri has been realistic around where I am in that space and gradually increased my minutes and given me breaks where needed," explained Falkner.
“She’s just wanted me to give all I’ve got when out there, before having a rest. Every time has been easier, but now my body is sore in places it’s never been sore before!”
The 28-year-old has featured in 11 games this season and been elevated to the Stars’ full-time roster for the tail end of the campaign.
Falkner says it’s been great to play after giving birth and to have Riley there supporting her.
“I’m thankful my body has allowed me to do it as well. In games my brain goes 100 miles an hour, but my body isn’t quite catching up just yet. That’ll come with time. The girls have been so welcoming and love Riley and she’s been on all our playing trips which has been cool.”
The former Silver Fern has brought some much-needed experience, poise and smarts to a young Stars team and she’s cherishing the chance to link up with good friend Maia Wilson in the shooting circle again.
“We have a strong connection on court. We’re not afraid to get the message across and take the words instead of how it’s said. It makes it easy to have those performance conversations then and there and just get on with it. I love playing with Maia, she’s such a talent.” Falkner said.
Coming back into the high-performance environment as a mum has given Falkner a renewed sense of perspective and she’s trying to enjoy every moment out on the court.
“Now there’s way more to life than just netball for me, which Is a good thing and also coming off a tough season and a lot of losses, getting to go home to Riley makes a big difference” Falkner added.
Reinvigorated and determined, Falkner’s excited about what the future may hold and she still thinks she has plenty to offer at netball’s highest level.
“The fire’s definitely still there. The goal is to be in contention for the 2027 Netball World Cup and then who knows beyond that. I definitely want to be competitive in this space and another six or seven months of getting my body back into shape for next year.”
The Stars host the Mystics on Sunday afternoon in their final game of the ANZ Premiership season.