IT’S been a roller-coaster ride for Thurgoona’s Julia Farrah over the past few years, but the young defender has bounced back strongly this season. She spoke to The Border Mail’s BECK O’CONNELL this week.
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BO: You won the under 18s premiership last year, how has the transition into A-grade been this year?
JF: It was a really big step up, the pace is so much faster in A-grade, but I’ve had so much coaching and support from the girls in the team, particularly at the defensive end, which has been amazing and really helped the transition.
BO: Has there been any lessons you’ve had to learn the hard way?
JF: I think the body-on-body has probably been the hardest and I dislocated my finger last week going for the ball.
BO: You guys are fourth at the moment, is there any other teams in particular that you’re nervous about or focusing on?
JF: We’d love to play Kiewa-Sandy Creek again. We played them round one and I think we were a bit rusty because we’re a completely new team. There was five or six brand new players who have come up from B and C-grade and me coming up from 18s. I think that was the first game we’ve ever really played together, so I think it will be very good competition next time.
BO: Tell me a little bit about your first year at Thurgoona, I got the word you trained week in, week out for the entire season and never took the court?
JF: I had a back injury from a couple of years ago, it’s something I was born with and eventually it got really bad. I was told that I could never play netball again. That was really tough, so I tried different sports like water polo and basketball. I saw a specialist in Melbourne and he said I’d be able to play again, so the day after I contacted Thurgoona and asked if I could come and train.
BO: How important is it for you to do the right rehab so you can have a long-term career?
JF: It gets worse in the winter, so I have to warm it up because netball is such a physical sport. I know how to manage it by doing a proper warm-up before every game, cooling down and keeping warm. If I wasn’t doing that, I wouldn’t be able to play.
BO: Is goal keeper your preferred position?
JF: I love GK and being able to read the play.
BO: Have you guys ever practiced the chairlift?
JF: We pulled it off in the under 18s grand final, I think I might have got one deflection, but it was so fun.
