MADI PLAYED TO THE MAX
FROM YOUNG SWAN TO INTERNATIONAL STAR
YOU don’t need to look too hard when you walk through the doors of South Barwon Football and Netball Club to appreciate the impact Madi Browne had in the time she was there.
Two A-grade premierships won by the age of 17 — one in the same year she claimed a league medal while still playing juniors in the morning — barely scratches the surface when it comes to her feats on court.
But it is what she did off court that left just as big a legacy.
As her premiership cocoach from 2004 and 2005 Sascha Veldhuis explains, Browne’s deeds were so farreaching it was deemed a necessity to honour her in a formal manner.
“When I was at South Barwon Madi had such an impact in giving back to the club that we named a medal after her,” Veldhuis said.
“That is awarded to a young player coming up through the junior ranks into the seniors who exemplifies the qualities Madi showed — such as commitment and giving back to the club — as well as excelling in the sport and leadership.
“I haven’t been at the club for a few years but she has always come back to the club and presented that medal to the winner, which is such a fantastic thing for a junior player to receive an award like that from an Australian player.
“She has always given back.”
Browne recently called time on her professional career, a journey that took her all the way to the top with the Australian Diamonds.
A fine centre-court player who dominated the national and international stage for a decade, Veldhuis said Browne’s intensity from a young age was evident.
“Madi was a standout in juniors coming through and when she came into A-grade she just fit in straight away,” she said. “Her intensity was awesome and she was driving that even as a youngster among adults.
“She had a great ability to read the play on court, which is something that can often take a long time to develop in junior players but she already had that instinctively.
“Madi has always been a leader and an example to others. Her professionalism on and off the court was beyond her years and she was always really professional about what she did and what she wanted to achieve in her career and she has done a great job.”
With natural ability coursing through her, South Barwon was keen to ensure Browne was given every opportunity to flourish. It was decided early on that giving her court time at senior level was the best way to fast-track her talent and development.
Swans co-coach at the time Renee Lane said that decision proved beneficial, both immediately and for many years after Browne had won back-toback flags.
“The natural nurturing of that talent was Madi playing above her age,” Lane said.
“She was such a young talent at that point of time playing A-grade against biggerbodied players and athletes, and that really helped nurture her development.
“It accelerated her progress but she always had such a level head. She was never daunted by anyone she played against and I think that held her in good stead in later years.
“She was never daunted by stepping up from Vixens to national representative teams — or the Magpies or the Fever to the Diamonds. She was always ready for the next step and playing out of age really accelerated and helped that.
“Nothing was ever going to be too much for her or too big for her, she was never going to be overwhelmed by any occasion because of what she experienced in her younger years.”
Surrounded by state league players and experienced GFL stars, there was an abundance of people to turn to for guidance in those formative years at South Barwon.
But unlike many prodigiously-talented teenage athletes who can be reluctant to receive help and who often shy away from advice, Lane said Browne often sought critical feedback.
“She was a consummate professional and would always listen to feedback,” Lane said.
“To her, feedback was about improvement, it wasn’t a criticism, and she always approached it that way.
“She certainly listened and was open to feedback and we were all playing state league and championship netball, so in some ways we were, not her equivalent, but it wasn’t as if she was receiving it from inexperienced people.
“She certainly wasn’t one of those kids with a chip on her shoulder and she didn’t have an attitude that she was too good for anyone or anything. She just always listened.”
Browne departs netball as one of the sport’s most decorated players.
Having represented her country and state at junior level, she played in the various national leagues for the Melbourne Kestrels and Melbourne Vixens, West Coast Fever and Collingwood Magpies and won gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
She was a two-time winner of the Australian international player of the year award, a four-time Constellation Cup winner, an ANZ Championship MVP, dual club MVP at both the Fever and the Vixens, a dual ANZ Championship team of the year wing attack, a premiership player for the Vixens and an ANZ Championship MVP recipient.
It is a long way from the Swans’ home court at McDonald Reserve, but as Veldhuis said, after grabbing the opportunity to fill a vacancy as a 15year-old in 2003, Browne consistently thrived throughout what was an illustrious career.
“We had a great young team back then and we had a good mix of older girls and younger girls like Madi coming through,” Veldhuis said.
“We had a lot of midcourt players and her position through her career has mainly been wing attack, but at that young stage of her career we had a position in wing defence that she filled.
“Her defensive game has always been an asset and she was able to come in and have the maturity to play wing defence and really have an impact through the season and in finals.
“She was always adaptable and able to play multiple positions in the midcourt and wherever we put her she made an impact.
“But her dedication and commitment to make the most out of wherever she was put, that has carried through her career, and she has been able to do that really well.
“Personally I think she is the best feeder I have seen play the game. Her drive and ability to make the circle edge and her variety of moves to get the centre pass, she has been so consistent throughout her career. She has been an ornament to the game.”