Jen Barrett reflects on her time on court with Thurgoona and Corowa-Rutherglen

"My mum started a whole netball club right near where we lived in Caulfield," Barrett said.

"She created our primary school team because there was no team for us."

Growing up playing representative netball for Waverley City, Barrett later made the big move to Darwin.

It was there she met her husband and former Ovens and Murray general manager Sean Barrett.

It wasn't until the pair moved to South Australia that Barrett received her first taste of country netball, claiming a league best and fairest award while playing for Kangarilla.

But she would later claim another league medal in 2015 after moving to the border and joining Tallangatta and District League club Thurgoona.

"I always like going along to those nights because you get to hang out with your mates, but it got towards the end and I thought gosh, this could potentially go my way," she said.

"I think I repeated myself about 50 times on stage just saying amazing over and over.

"I had a lot of my friends there to celebrate."

Barrett went on to be a core member of Thurgoona's premiership dynasty, playing in three of their four consecutive flags from 2013 to 2016.

But she almost missed selection in the side.

"They had won in 2013 before I came and Sean's sister had said they're pretty good, I don't know if you're going to get in," she said.

"I tried out and Zanelle Gerecke, who was our super coach through those times, was originally thinking she'd pop me into C-grade.

"Which would have been fine, I would have still played.

"That was quite amusing and we joke about that all the time."

Now a defender for Corowa-Rutherglen, Barrett admits coach Georgie Bruce played a big role in luring her to the club.

"Georgie is quite a persistent woman," she laughed.

"Sean got the job as the general manager of the O and M and got to know her quite well.

"He said Georgie's a great person and I think you'll really enjoy her company.

"One year she rang me and I said I'd come have a try at the Swan Classic.

"It was the end of the first day at the Lauren Jackson stadium and I said 'are we going to the Newy for a beer?' They were all like yep, we are.

"I thought great, this is my club.

"I had a thumb reconstruction in 2017 and thought I would like to give the Ovens and Murray a try before I get too old."

However, she admitted it was a hard call to leave her friends at Thurgoona.

"Leaving those group of girls was a really tough choice," she said.

"We often joke about getting the band back together and finding a club that would take all of us veterans on as a package deal."

Barrett now finds herself coming up against her best friend and former teammate Kristen Andrews, who has now joined Albury.

"It's quite funny and we have a bit of a joke about it," she said.

"Being a defender and her playing wing attack, she's obviously feeding the ball into the end I'm trying to defend.

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"We had a joke last time that she passed me one or two balls.

"We're still best mates and it's nice to be able to see her twice a season on the court."

After nursing an injury this season, Barrett made her return for the Roos against Wangaratta.

"I did my calf, which was my first sign of an old woman injury I'm told," she said.

"The girls are all just so talented, they make me feel sprightly again."

Being one of the more experienced players in the team, Barrett has taken on the role of chief motivator.

"I think my role is more for mental positivity, bringing them up in that regard rather than outlaying any of my skills to them," she said.

"It's just an amazing group of girls."

After the heartbreak of the 2019 grand final against the Pies, Barrett admitted the Roos are hungry for more.

"That loss and pain is something I don't want to feel again," she said.

"That's a driver for us to go one step further.

"However, we have to get there first and there's a few roadblocks ahead of us."

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