She’s been a regular fixture of the Diamonds squad over the last decade but is yet to make a Commonwealth Games appearance so when Paige Hadley got the good news, her response was fitting.
By Erin Lyons
Paige Hadley was sitting in the car outside her Sydney home when her phone lit up.
Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich’s name flashed on the screen.
Hadley, shaking with nerves, had been expecting the call but the outcome of it had been weighing on her mind for weeks.
“I was so nervous on the day,” she said.
Dozens of questions crossed the mid-courters mind, many laced with “what ifs”.
“What am I doing? What am I going to do? What do I do (if I don’t get in)?,” she said.
“When Stacey told me that I was in the team, I just started crying.”
Despite being a regular feature in the Diamonds outfit, this will be the 29-year-old’s first Commonwealth Games berth.
She narrowly missed selection in 2018 and suffered an ACL injury in the lead up to the 2014 Games.
“My journey in the green and gold has been so tough,” Hadley said.
“I feel like I’ve been around for so long but every time I’ve made a team or squad it has been super difficult.
“We used to joke about how I used to time my comebacks just in time for the World Cups.
“I feel like the Commonwealth Games had eluded me and I didn't know if I was going to get that opportunity. Going to the Games is huge because it’s a multi-sport event on the global scale.”
THE ‘PINCH ME’ MOMENTS
For Hadley, there have been many “pinch me” moments in her career, from winning the 2015 World Cup to snagging two Premierships with her “Swifties”.
Being considered one of the best 12 athletes in the country at their chosen sport will now join that incredible archive of “pinch me” memories for the netball stalwart.
“I’m so grateful for every time I get to pull on the green and gold dress or be a part of the squad with the most amazing humans representing our country,” Hadley said.
“Sometimes I pinch myself and think, wow I’m actually one of the best 12 athletes in the country playing netball.
“It’s so special to be able to inspire young kids to play the sport, but also to know that all the work (you put in) and sacrifices you make along the way were worth it.”
As she mentioned, it takes a lot of hard work to be one of the best in the game and Hadley is completely transparent when she confesses, she doesn’t really have downtime.
She’s a receptionist for a doctor and spends much of her ‘free time’ with her two nieces or coaching kids which she credits to reminding her “why” she started playing netball in the first place.
“Sometimes you can get so caught up with SSN, Diamonds selections and the pressure to perform that coaching reminds me of exactly why I started playing this game, and why I still play it.”
HUNGER FOR GOLD
Growing up in Penrith, in the foothills of the Blue Mountains, it was only natural that her family were NRL fanatics. Hadley though loves all sports and has a particular soft spot for the Sydney Swans.
Her ideal Friday night, she says, involves getting home, sinking into the couch after a long week and watching the Swannies.
“I know how much it takes to be good at what you do (in sport). I appreciate all sport because I know how hard it is,” Hadley said.
And when it comes to being the best in the business Hadley doesn’t beat around the bush when she considers the significance of stepping out on court at the Commonwealth Games, an event she believes is the “pinnacle of the sport”.
“We’re gunning for that gold medal,” she says, before reflecting on the heartbreak of the 2018 loss against England.
“This group is hungry for that and for me, (a Commonwealth Games gold medal) is the absolute pinnacle.
“I want to win that gold and bring it back to Australia.”
ABOUT PAIGE
Name: Paige Hadley
Positions: WA, C, WD
Game day pump up song: Whatever ‘DJ Cara Koenen’ chooses
Game day breakfast: Smoothie or Weet-Bix
