When netball star Laura Langman left New Zealand earlier this year to play for the New South Wales Swifts, it wasn’t a decision the star Silver Fern took lightly.
But the change of scenery was exactly what the talented athlete needed.
“A change is as good as a rest, and I’m not very good at resting, so change it was!” she says in this week’s New Zealand Woman’s Weekly with a laugh.
“What I’ve gotten better at is listening to my body. I used to just smash it, all the time. Now I listen, and I think I’m a lot more confident in what I do and where I put my energy, which has paid dividends. As much as you want to , you can’t just rip, s*** and bust the whole time, because something will bust. I’m much more purposeful and I know what I want to get out of something more.”
The decision to take up a contract with the Sydney-based side, rather than play for a New Zealand-based franchise, required special dispensation from Netball New Zealand in order for the Hamilton-native to continue to play for the Silver Ferns.
But, as she exclusively tells the Weekly, Laura is loving her new Sydney life, and is finding she adores big-city living.
“It’s kind of a home away from home. But, there are still the little things you have to get used to- knowing how long it’ll take to get places, where the supermarkets are, that kind of thing. And I have heaps of activity buddies here!”
Laura also chats to the Weekly about the separation from her husband Adrian, who has remained in New Zealand, what she’s missed most about home, and whether she’s planning on returning to Aotearoa for the 2017 season, amidst shakeups in the netball landscape.
Words: Kelly Bertrand
For the full interview, grab this week’s issue of New Zealand Woman’s Weekly, out now.
