The Trident Homes Tactix have named three new apprentice players ahead of the 2023 ANZ Premiership with Holly Munro, Emma Thompson and Kate Littlejohn joining the side.
The trio will join the Premiership team for various training sessions to get a taste of the elite netball environment and have already been a part of the Tactix pre-season, the players back in action earlier this month.
Tactix coach Marianne Delaney-Hoshek said it was exciting to be able to offer three young athletes an insight into the set-up for an elite netballer.
“Being able to open up these sorts of opportunities for aspiring athletes is really positive and I’m looking forward to being able to work with all three,” she said. “They all have very different backgrounds with Holly a South Canterbury product, Emma playing much of her early netball in Australia while Kate has already experienced the high performance arena through rowing.
“I’m sure all three will bring something different to the Tactix and we hope they get plenty out of this experience.”
Munro, who was born and bred in South Canterbury, first pulled on a netball bib when she was just four-years-old, playing for the Pleasant Point Netball Club.
Her real love of the game came when she attended Craighead Diocesan School and a move to St Andrews College in Christchurch, on a netball scholarship for her final year of school, only fuelled her desire to achieve on court.
Munro, who represented Canterbury at last year’s Open Championships and was a part of the New Zealand Secondary Schools’ team, said she was looking forward to taking on the apprentice player role within the Tactix.
“I’m really proud to have come through grassroots netball within our region and I hope to continue growing my game,” Munro, who plays defence, said. “The long terms goals would be to become a contracted player for the Tactix, and I’d love to represent my country.”
Littlejohn is a former Magic training partner (2016-2017 pre-season) but turned her focus to rowing in her final year at secondary school when she was offered an opportunity to row and study at Stanford University in the United States.
The defender retained her netball ties however, returning home during the winter where she played club netball. But the global pandemic proved a game changer for Littlejohn, with her extended stay in New Zealand giving her the chance to trial and play for Waikato in the 2021 National Netball League.
She said it re-ignited her love of the game and after graduating late last year, Littlejohn, who has moved to Christchurch to study for a Masters in Psychology at University, is ready to focus her sporting ambitions on netball.
“I’m really excited to have the opportunity to train alongside some of the best players in the country and absorb the learnings that come from being in a high performance netball environment,” she said. “And I’m also looking forward to being a part of the enthusiastic Canterbury sporting community.”
Thompson will also be new to the Canterbury sporting scene having grown up in Australia. The dual citizen initially made a move to New Zealand in 2020 when she was selected for the Northern Marvels National Netball League team.
But her time in Auckland was cut short due to Covid-19 and she made the decision to return to Australia where, when netball recommenced, the midcourter took up a development opportunity with the NSW Premier League and the Giants Academy team where she was the starting wing attack in the 2022 Australian Netball Championships.
“But playing senior netball in New Zealand has always been a part of my development plan,” Thompson said. “I had a positive experience in New Zealand in 2020 and we’ve enjoyed family holidays here over many years, so I naturally had a strong attachment returning and I’m excited about the opportunity with the Tactix.”
She said she was looking forward to contributing to the Tactix environment, both on and off court, with long term goals of an ANZ Premiership contract and international netball.
