Annelise is ready to be a shooting star

Former Millicent premiership player headed to national championships

It was all new for Annelise Janssen in 2022 as she embarked on her first experience at a national championships as part of the South Australian 17 & under State netball team.

This week, as she heads to Darwin as part of the same team, she knows what to expect and she also has some more elite training and match play under her belt after relocating to Adelaide last year to attend Westminster School, as well as pursuing her netball.

Of course, Annelise had a strong grounding, plying her trade as a junior at the Millicent Netball Club, representing Western Border at SA Country Championships and being part of multiple premiership teams, including the 17 & under and A Reserve titles last season.

“When I look back at my time at the Millicent Netball Club and my involvement in the Western Border competition, it developed me not only as a player and a person, but also a mentor,” Annelise said. “Millicent provided me with an opportunity to extend my playing abilities by allowing me to play seniors. Due to this, I learnt so much more about the game and how to handle physical defenders. Being able to stand strong and push myself on these defenders is what I love about the goal shooter position the most.”

For those who saw Annelise the first time she hit a court are all too aware the work that has gone into her career thus far – from both her early coaches including Donna Denton, as well as the work Annelise, herself, put in. “There were setbacks I had, as when I was young, I struggled with my co-ordination and confidence,” Annelise said. “However, my family and the club supported me and continued providing me with opportunities to improve my skills. This allowed me to build resilience, which is an important skill I take into every training session.”

Annelise also developed to the point where she took on a coaching role with the club and she believes this has also helped her develop as a netballer. “The young girls I coached inspired my research project, because I was intrigued with young athlete mindsets and what needs to be in a team environment in order for the young girls to be successful,” she said. “What I found I now can apply to every member of a team I am a part of , whether this role is a captaining role in a netball team, or a peer in class, and it allows me to support everyone and be a mentor if anyone requires it.”

The move to Adelaide has exposed Annelise to even more high level coaching and she has thrived in the new environment. “I am extremely fortunate enough to now have my development overseen by multiple coaches,” Annelise said. “Kirsty LeonardDown is the head coach at Garville, and her experience combined with Cassie Martin’s allows me to see the game with a different perspective, which I can implement into my games and continue to improve beyond what I thought I could.”

She is also learning from her Westminster coach Lani Miller, while her State coaches Peta Maher and Cassie Martin Annelise is ready to be a shooting star Former Millicent premiership player headed to national championships continue to push her fitness and help me build a fierce mentality out on court.

“It has definitely increased my versatility in the goal circle and I have practised my long range shots so that would not become a weakness for defenders to exploit, and they have helped me practice my circle movement, not to just be a holding shooter,” Annelise said. “As I am a year older, my physical capabilities in terms of strength have increased, and with targeted training sessions in the gym and on court, I am more confident in my fitness and when I take high passes in the air. I am now looking to further develop my fitness so I can play in goal attack, and to also increase my vertical jump, because height is most definitely not everything in elite netball.” Conjuring this improvement has come on the back of a busy training schedule since moving to Adelaide.

“I play club netball at Garville Netball Club in their Premier League squad, which currently entails four netball trainings a week – two gym sessions, one court session and one Pilates and running session,” Annelise said. There has also been the weekly Sunday training with the State team and she utilises the quality facilities at Westminster to add in cardio sessions and weighted conditioning sessions.

“Time management used to be something I struggled with, however, being disciplined and using exercise as my break allowed me to change my mindset,” she said. “Instead of saying ‘I never have any time to do school work, why do I have to go to netball training?’ I trained myself to get my work done early, so therefore I ‘deserve’ the break exercise provides, and I can focus on pushing myself further every session. Because of this change in mindset, I can still achieve high grades in school without getting burnt out.”

And her Adelaide move is as much about her school work and social life as it is her netball. “ I really enjoy it at Westminster, because I get to meet other people from rural areas and learn their story and build connections with the day school students,” Annelise said. “I can challenge myself academically in my Stage 2 subjects and physically by being involved in the school netball team. I settled into Adelaide nicely, as I applied myself in school and always pushed myself at netball trainings for club and school.

“You have to build a positive environment around yourself a school.! You get out what you put in, and due to this I was able to make the most out of boarding school last year and will continue to do so this year.”