Starring at training will be Wilkins’ lot
Donna Wilkins played the house down but won’t be suiting up for the Central Pulse any time soon.
The 37-year-old shooter made a surprise appearance at Pulse training on Wednesday after being summoned from Southland by coach Robyn Broughton to work with shooters Ameliaranne Wells and Jodi Brown.
That extended to Wilkins playing all four quarters of the Pulse’s intra-squad match but won’t include any TransTasman Netball League games.
Theoretically, Wilkins is available for Monday’s game with the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic in Hamilton.
But that is complicated by the fact she is then off to Paris to watch the French Open tennis tournament.
Even so, consideration was given to trying to get her to the Magic match, even if it were in the guise of technical adviser. That was not practical but Broughton said Wells, in particular, got enough out of the sessions on Wednesday night and Thursday morning to mean Wilkins’ presence would still be felt in Hamilton anyway.
‘‘A different voice,’’ was the reason Broughton gave for bringing Wilkins up to Wellington.
The pair have always sung off the same hymn sheet when it comes to netball, so what Wilkins had to say to the Pulse shooters was not revolutionary.
Aside from having the message delivered in a slightly different way, Broughton said the advantage of having Wilkins at training was that she could demonstrate. ‘‘I know exactly what Donna does as a shooter, and I know what I want, but I’m not a shooter.
‘‘Plus she’s young enough to show them how to do it,’’ Broughton said.
The one thing Broughton had not counted on was how much Wilkins would inspire everyone.
You could not call the Pulse a gloomy bunch at the moment but their inability to close out games this season has added some unnecessary anxiety.
They really ought to have won six or seven games by now, instead of just three.
So after a few Wilkins home truths and a healthy dose of her bloodymindedness, the whole squad were convinced they can kick on from here and claim a New Zealand conference playoff berth.