Michelle Rossoukas

1999 was the end of my two years spent at the Australian Institute of Sport where I lived and breathed everything I needed to know about netball. I was only 19 years old and had already travelled to 5 different countries. I made huge achievements which I never thought were possible. My highlight was making the Australian Under 21 team and also the Victorian Open team.  I met some famous athletes who are now Australia’s biggest superstars i.e. Lauren Jackson (basketball), Michael Klim (swimming), Luke Wilkshire (soccaroos) and made lifelong friends.

Now it was time to hit the big world of netball. I was heading back home to Melbourne to play in what I never thought I’d ever play at the age of 20 which was in the National Netball League, the highest level of netball possible in Australia. I was the rookie of the Melbourne Kestrels. I still remember my first game very clearly. It was in Perth against their team. I never felt such adrenalin going through my body. The pace of the game, the skills, speed and the huge crowds that came to watch were just amazing. Perth was known to have some of the biggest and loudest crowds and boy they were. I knew I had to work hard if I wanted to keep playing at this level. Because once you start to fall back it takes twice as long to keep up. It was my dream to play at this level and against the biggest names in the country.

After two years with the Kestrels I thought it was time to move on. I was 22 and wanted to explore more of my netball and most of all travel interstate. This was a big test for me as I wanted to become more independent. I had my family’s support and made the big move up to sunny Queensland.

Brisbane was going to be my home for the next 3 years. I signed on with the Queensland Firebirds and was also a QAS (Queensland Academy of Sport) scholarship holder.  When you’re a   scholarship holder for any sporting institute in the country, there are so many qualified people on your team.  Our team had our own strength and conditioning coach, physiotherapist, dietitian, sports massage therapist, doctor and many other wonderful specialist coaches to help us achieve our best.

Training here was a little different to the Kestrels. I guess just different coaching techniques and a change of lifestyle; I found it a little hard at first. I had to adjust to the weather, find myself a place to live and most of all find a job. That was the hardest. Back in the days of NNL you had to find yourself work. I remember my coach telling us that you do need a life outside of netball and she was totally right. You may be passionate about the game but you also need rest and time away from it.

This move was a big step for me. Living away from home, making sure I was eating the right foods for my body. Playing and training for netball 6 days a week and fitting in full time work. Time management was very important. I had to find a job that could allow me to leave at certain times to go to training and also allow days off for when we travelled interstate. I was lucky to find one that did agree to do that.

My week was full on with training sessions and work. Here is an insight of what my weekly plan was during the season…

Click Here to Veiw Michelle's Schedule