Lilly Sloan has taken her powerful playing style to the Wide Bay Schoolgirls competition, being named Player of the Match during Wide Bay’s 14-6 defeat of South West earlier this month.
Lilly took some time to reflect on the experience.
What was the most valuable experience you gained from representing the Wide Bay region (on and off the field)?
The most valuable experience I gained from representing Wide Bay was playing against some good sides some which were a lot larger than ours. It helped me work on my defence in tackle technique and line speed, as well as attack in identifying gaps and support plays. As the sides we were playing were at a very high level you had to be putting the effort in consistently and ensuring you had fuelled and recovered to support the level of physical activity your body was doing in a game. Off field it was important to stretch, after every game our team would do a cool down so we would be ready for the next day. With the mental side of things, it was important to make sure you were always in a positive mindset and ready to put in the effort on the field.
How did the standard of competition compare to what you’re used to? What did you learn about your game?
The level of competition was a lot harder than I’m used to in club or school footy. As I was playing prop it was very physically demanding running and defending some of the bigger and stronger players. This taught me to tackle a bit lower as to not get bumped off and drive my legs in order to slow down the other plays momentum. It was also important to have one player down low and one up high for the tackle. With attack it can be hard working with a new team to figure out plays however in our team we only had one set play as we did not get to train with our team a lot before the competition. This kept the game shape simple while also being very effective as everyone knew their role in the play. This helped us score a few tries out the backline.
What challenges did you face during the carnival (physical, mental, or emotional)? How did you handle them?
During the carnival having a game every day was very physically demanding, our team was very sore. With some of our players getting injuries there was less interchange happening as the carnival went on which left the remainder of players on for longer. Coming to the end of the carnival it became even more important to stretch, eat, hydrate, and recover properly to ensure we could play our best for the team, not get injured, and consistently perform throughout the carnival. This tested our mental and emotional toughness as well to keep playing even when at times we were exhausted and was important to focus on the task at hand and put in the 1% efforts that added up to bigger moments in the game.
How has this experience influenced your goals or motivation for rugby league moving forward?
This experience really motivated me to keep pursuing rugby league and felt it really improved my confidence and gameplay for local footy. I had represented Wide Bay the previous year however did not feel I was playing quite at the level of the other girls and feel I did not play my best on interchange. This year I felt a lot more up to the level I was competing at, playing in the run on side, contributing largely in defence, and getting player of the match in a game. I feel I have improved a lot from last year and it really motivated me to keep improving my footy for next year and hopefully try and make the national side.
What advice would you give to other girls in our program who aspire to represent at a regional level?
Advice I would give to others wanting to make Wide Bay is putting in effort on and off the field. Making time for sessions that are not scheduled like going to the gym or extra fitness before or after training are really effective and you can definitely feel the improvement in your game. It also gives you a mental baseline for when games get tough, knowing that it is possible to push through and give more when it feels like you have nothing left. I definitely have a lot to work on in my game that needs improving including working on my preparation before the game. I love carnivals like this as it shows what you have improved on from previous years and where you still need to improve for years to come.
Photos courtesy of Queensland School Sport 10-18yrs Rugby League.