Netball: Jess Tuki stands tall on wing

Physically more suited to shooting or defending goals, Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic's Jess Tuki looks to have found her netball niche in the most unlikely of positions.
Touted from a young age as an exciting talent, Tuki struggled at elite level as a shooter where her early career was forged. After re-inventing herself last year as a defender, there was always a plan from coach Noeline Taurua to move her back to the attack end, and wing attack in particular.
And that is where she has found herself in recent weeks after illness confined regular Frances Solia to the sidelines. After a nomadic few years of switching roles and a lot of bench warming, Tuki hopes she has at last found her rightful position.
"It would be really nice to start specialising and wing attack's the position that I definitely feel I have the best chance in," she said. "Typically, I'm not a wing attack's build but I really hope I can make it my own position and master it."
A member of the Silver Ferns squad in 2006 and with three test caps to her name, Tuki, 23, has relished the opportunity to play two full games in the past two weeks, a first in her four-year ANZ Championship career where she has spent one year with Southern Steel and three with Magic.
"The Tactix [March 7] was my first full game and with that one we even had overtime so it was just great," she said.
"It's been a real confidence-booster to get full games and really feel that, yes, I can do this each week and this is where I want to be now every week.
"The first couple of games of the season where I didn't play full games were sort of warming to the task. Now it's an expectation, it is my job and role now, so no excuses ... it's a matter of get out there and do it."
While she is a work in progress with Magic also boasting another attacker light on experience in shooter Julianna Naoupu, Tuki, and the team in general, showed signs of progress in their latest outing. There was more fluidity on attack than seen previously and a sense of the team finding some momentum despite a gut-wrenching one-goal loss to Northern Mystics in the last play of the game.
The lanky 1.85m Tuki is easily the tallest wing attack in the competition, occupying a role that is usually reserved for the short and nimble.
But in time, she hopes her long limbs will become valuable assets in the role.
"I'm probably not as nippy and fast as some of the other shorter ones going around but I'm fortunate to have a bit of speed behind me so that and my height are good attributes," she said.
"In netball, everything's always changing and you get these tall wing defences now who can just smother the little wing attacks, so it's helpful for me, to have another option there."
Tuki faces her biggest challenge to date when Magic meet the star-studded Melbourne Vixens in round six transtasman action in Hamilton on Monday.