Dame Noels: ‘A huge cost on my career and life
Dame Noeline Taurua (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Whātua) is a legend of New Zealand netball. She played 34 test matches for the Silver Ferns before a serious knee injury ended her playing career. The affable and successful Ferns coach is a key voice in supporting the revised NetballSmart warm-up. The NetballSmart team have conducted research, gathered evidence, listened to community feedback, and enhanced the pre-game warm-up.
I fell into coaching. Back in 1999, I was 31 and still playing for the Ferns when I ruptured my anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). I was devastated.
Even though it was many years ago, I can still clearly remember that feeling of being down and out from a serious netball injury.
I had two ACL injuries during my playing career in the 1990s – one on each knee. The first one, I was younger, and I recovered well but the second one ended my career. It is a tough injury to come back from and it had a huge cost on both my career and life.
Back in those times, we weren’t full-time athletes. We were holding down full-time jobs, so the challenge was even greater. I learnt a lot about what is required in terms of ticking all of the boxes in your rehabilitation.
I loved coaching straight away. It’s one of those jobs that you learn through experience. Whether good experiences or not so good, you never stop learning.
