Super Netball Grand Final: Melbourne Vixens defender Kate Eddy on her return from injury and crucial grand final assignment

Sidelined for more than half 2024 Super Netball season, Melbourne Vixens’ defender Kate Eddy is back on court and at ‘full steam’ right in time to play a key role in the Grand Final against Adelaide Thunderbirds this weekend.

Melbourne Vixens defender Kate Eddy admits she initially feared a leg fracture could derail her finals hopes this season, but she is back firing and ready to “create chaos” against Adelaide Thunderbirds’ playmakers in the Super Netball grand final.

In a perfectly timed comeback, the star wing defence was among the Vixens’ best in her first full 60 minutes on court since she returned from injury as Melbourne booked its place in the season decider with a thrilling one-goal preliminary final win over the West Coast Fever.

Eddy was sidelined for more than half of the 2024 campaign after suffering a break in her fibula in friendly fire in round five against the New South Wales Swifts.

Kate Eddy spent eight weeks on the sidelines with a cracked fibula this year. Picture: Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

The premiership defender spent the next eight weeks on the sidelines, returning in round 13 against the Fever, and has been gradually building up her minutes on court since.

Eddy’s return has been a pivotal inclusion for the Vixens’ backline alongside Emily Mannix, Jo Weston and Rudi Ellis for the team’s premiership push as they face a title showdown against a Thunderbirds’ attack, spearheaded by Romelda Aiken-George.

Opening up on her late-season return, Eddy said she was initially worried the injury could threaten the rest of her campaign.

“I broke the head of my fibula in round five, Kiera Austin running into my leg, so it was my own teammate,” Eddy said.

“When I went in for the scan, I was like ‘It’s probably just subluxed the joint of my tib-fib’ and I was thinking that it was maybe three or four weeks.

“Then to hear that you have broken it and it could be eight weeks, you kind of think the worst case scenario, that you can’t play again this season.

“But looking too far ahead was probably the worst thing to do, so I just tried to stay week by week as much as I could.

“Once I had the scan after about four weeks and the bone was healing and we could go into loading …. it was just fingers crossed the rest of my body pulled up fine from going four weeks of not even putting my leg on the ground, then walking with crutches, then walking, it’s a lot for your body to then go and try to play netball again.

“So you always think, ‘Can I come back and be at the same pace and get back to where I was before I hurt myself?’. It was probably more the mental side of it that I really struggled with versus the physical side of it because I would have played with a broken leg if I could.”

Eddy defends Fever’s Kelsey Browne in their preliminary final. Picture: Graham Denholm/Getty Images

Eddy conceded her first minutes on court in her comeback match had been a shock to the system, but now feels she is back to full steam ahead of a grand final assault.

“The pace of the game is so fast and definitely in my first quarter that I played I was like ‘Whoa, I have definitely missed this the last eight weeks’,” Eddy said.

“But I feel like I’ve gotten back into the groove of it and playing 60 minutes on the weekend, it is such a credit to all of the staff and team for being able to help me get back.”

Weston largely filled the wing defence post while Eddy was sidelined, but coach Simone McKinnis opted to give Eddy the starting nod against Fever wing attack Alice Teague-Neeld in the preliminary final, moving Weston into the circle.

After playing a crucial role on Teague-Neeld, Eddy now faces another key assignment against Adelaide young gun wing attack-goal attack Georgie Horjus.

“Georgie is such a smart and creative player. She is little and quick and that is something that I have to look at, making sure that I have got really great footwork and speed and attack and try to create a lot of chaos out there,” Eddy said.

“Personally, against Georgie I have just got to take it to her and try to limit as much ball as possible that gets to her because once the ball is in her hand she is quite smart with it.”

Eddy showing no signs of fear last time against the Adelaide Thunderbirds in the semi finals. Picture: Mark Brake/Getty Images

The Vixens have lost their past two matches against the Thunderbirds in Adelaide by a combined margin of 40 goals.

but Eddy said the Vixens would be armed with a new game plan for the grand final.

“We have acknowledged the last two games that we have gone over there, we have lost to them by quite reasonable margins,” Eddy said

“We have to accept that and we have to change something. For us, it’s making sure we do the homework and we do have to change our game plan from what we attempted the last two games that we went over there.

“We need all players on deck playing our role. Grand finals are not always the prettiest and flashiest games of netball, it’s all the little one percenters, the loose ball gets and knowing that it’s going to take a whole 60 minutes.

“I think we have got the best ball skills in the competition, I think for us it is just making sure that we execute. At the end of the day it’s just a game of keepings off, so I guess we just have to do that.”

Eddy celebrates with Rudi Ellis after the preliminary final win over match West Coast Fever. Picture: Graham Denholm/Getty Images

A member of the Vixens’ 2020 premiership team, which she regards as one of her “favourite memories in life”, Eddy admitted she feels more naturally comfortable in the goal circle, but has grown to love her role at wing defence.

“Wing defence I think is the hardest position on the court,” Eddy said.

“It definitely is a lot of work with not a lot of reward. Goal defence is probably my comfort blanket, almost I do feel more naturally comfortable there.

“But wing defence, it is just an absolute grind and I have slowly become a really big fan of it. “It is not as physically taxing as goal defence, you get a little bit more of a breather which is kind of nice, but I think it is such a different role.

“The wing attacks are like the playmakers so I feel like the pressure is on to try and suffocate the amount of ball that the wing attack gets.”

ENDS

Originally published as Super Netball Grand Final: Melbourne Vixens defender Kate Eddy on her return from injury and crucial grand final assignment