Netball star Mila Reuelu-Buchanan eyes Commonwealth Games after injury. Photo / Photosport
Through the toughest year of her life – floored by injury and grief – Mila Reuelu-Buchanan has learned it’s okay to be proud of herself.
And rightly so.
Beyond the neat surgical scar, the dynamic midcourter has bounced back from the devastating knee injury that, in a single misstep, brought her standout 2024 ANZ Premiership season abruptly to an end.
“My whole identity was put on hold,” the 27-year-old says.
After her rapid 10-month recovery, Reuelu-Buchanan is now back training with the Silver Ferns squad – her sights set on next year’s Commonwealth Games and then playing at her first World Cup in 2026.
She’s building a house in Wellington’s Miramar with her fiancé, Du’Plessis Kirifi – the newly-minted All Black who’s taught her the importance of backing herself.
And she’s slowly coming to terms with the loss of one of the people closest to her – her 85-year-old grandmother, Lola Reuelu, a pillar of the Samoan and Tokelauan communities, who died last September.
“I was going through two lots of grief at the same time – battling with my knee and then losing my nana,” she says, tearing up. “But after doing my ACL, I came home to Wellington and got to spend five precious weeks with her that I wouldn’t have otherwise had.
“She was very present in my life – a big part of the values instilled in me have come from my nana. She was the sweetest, funniest woman, and she was always bragging about me at church or at housie.
“Losing her was the hardest thing my family has ever had to deal with. Grief just sucks.”
With time, Reuelu-Buchanan has come to see a silver lining in her setbacks.
“I genuinely believe this injury was the best thing for me, for my growth on and off the court,” she says. “It’s shown me how far I can challenge my mind and my body, and it’s been a reminder of how strong my work ethic is.
“I’ve learned that it’s okay to say I’m proud of myself. Growing up in New Zealand there’s an assumption you’re arrogant if you say that. But I copped a massive injury, like I’d never experienced before … and I learned that netball is a big part of who I am, but it’s not my entire identity.”
Among the many lessons Reuelu-Buchanan learned from her complex injury – a ruptured ACL, torn meniscus and MCL in her left knee, as well as a calf tear and a small fracture – was not to compare herself to others who’ve been through it.
“I looked to other players who’d gone through similar experiences to gain some reassurance I’d be okay. But along my journey, I heard stories like ‘You’re never going to be the same’, and that wasn’t helping me,” she says.
She watched Black Ferns Sevens captain Sarah Hirini return to play at the Paris Olympics just six and a half months after rupturing her ACL.
“I was thinking ‘Why am I only learning to run at six months?’ But I was quickly reminded you go at your own pace. You’re not only coming back to play – you’re coming back to prevent further injuries; to be stronger than you were before,” Reuelu-Buchanan says.
“So I learned not to ask questions and just go about my business.”
Throughout her recovery, she did the small things “savagely well” – a mantra borrowed from Silver Ferns physio Sharon Kearney.
“I learned to actually slow down, and do the little things well, and celebrate the small wins,” Reuelu-Buchanan says.
And she also honed her mental strength – something she’d always trusted but never tested as this challenge demanded.
“I was getting a whole new knee and learning to walk again, but I felt like there was a disconnect between my body and my mind for the first time in my life. I was having to remind my body that I was actually okay – which was really hard,” she says.
“I have to acknowledge our Silver Ferns psychologist, Rod Corban, for giving me the tools to push through that, and know it’s normal to have feelings of fear when you’re coming back from an injury.”
When Reuelu-Buchanan met with Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua after her surgery, she was given sage advice.
“I felt like I came off the best season I’d had, and Noels said, ‘We don’t expect you to come back and be the same person you were last season’,” she says.
“I appreciated her saying that to show there was no pressure on me. But what I don’t think she realises is that I took that as motivation to come back.”
She also struggled watching from the sidelines as the Silver Ferns comprehensively won the Constellation Cup, for just the third time.
“As a team player, you’re proud of them, but you’re also gutted you weren’t part of it,” she says. “The time I had in the Silver Ferns, we were going through a lot of growth and learning, and we set the team up to where we are now. So it’s okay to feel gutted not to be part of the success.
“My mum told me: ‘The only one who can prevent you from achieving your goals is yourself.’ So I really worked on the comparing and the doubting.”
On the afternoon of her 27th birthday, Reuelu-Buchanan thought she’d just seen her own ghost.
It was the day she returned to the court – on managed minutes – in the opening round of this year’s ANZ Premiership. The Stars lost 71-55 to the Mystics that day, but it’s the teammates they lost that she’ll always remember.
Three of the Stars’ starting seven were carried off injured – the worst case being wing defence Greer Sinclair, who ruptured the ACL in her left knee. For Reuelu-Buchanan, it turned what should have been a milestone into a moment of horror.
“My first game back was meant to be a celebration, yeah? Then one of my really good friends goes down the same way I did,” says.
“I remember I felt like I was seeing my ghost. My teammates got around me and said, ‘It’s okay’, but it was an absolute shock. Knowing what I’d just been through, and knowing my friend Greer would have to now go through that, was so hard to see.”
That early misfortune set the tone for the Stars’ season, as they went on to lose nine of their 10 games. Eager to re-establish herself, Reuelu-Buchanan also had to learn to shift her focus away from the results.
“I was starting to not enjoy moments of the game, which was affecting my game. But once I worked on that, I was able to just play with freedom – not worrying if I was going to make it back into the Silver Ferns again.
“What I’ve learned quickly within this environment is the best way to support my team is to focus on my role and nailing that, rather than trying to do everybody else’s role,” says Reuelu-Buchanan, who played her 100th premiership game this season.
Through it all, she credits the Stars’ close team bond for keeping them together.
“I have to really give it up to the Stars for what we went through. We had a young group, too, so to get through all that and still love each other, that was success in its own way,” she says.
While other New Zealand players are heading to the Australian and English super leagues for 2026, Reulu-Buchanan has chosen to stay in New Zealand.
“I wish I was a little bit more courageous to do the same,” she says of those who have exemptions to play overseas. “But I think given my unique situation of coming back from an ACL injury, my focus is to get back on court and be consistent.
“But I’m proud of the girls for going overseas. I think that’s the best thing for them.”
Another reason is her desire to finally win an ANZ Premiership title – something she firmly believes the Stars, two-time finalists, are capable of.
“I love that group of girls. I feel like we’ve created an incredible environment, and I want to still be a part of what can be our massive success,” she says.
Spending another netball season in Auckland means more time apart for Reuelu-Buchanan and Kirifi, who lives in Wellington. The couple are used to spending time apart.
“Dupes and I have been together for five years in October, and we’ve probably spent only two years in the same place at the same time,” she laughs.
The situation changed when she spent most of her rehabilitation back in the capital, and the couple leaned on each other – especially when Kirifi faced decisions about his own professional career.
“I’ve learned a lot from him and he’s learned a lot from me. He was huge during my return – he gave me confidence in myself. He would always remind me of how incredible I am. I love him as the man he is, with or without rugby,” Reuelu-Buchanan says.
Kirifi told the Aotearoa Rugby Pod he wouldn’t be an All Black if it wasn’t “in a large part” to Reuelu-Buchanan.
“I was all over the show when we met, and she challenged me in a lot of ways to be better,” he says.
At the same time she suffered her injury, Kirifi was fighting to get a start in the Hurricanes loose forwards in Super Rugby Pacific.
“It’s tough being on the bench – some athletes are either going to take that as an opportunity to prove they should be on the field, or it could go the other way,” Reuelu-Buchanan says.
“But the determination Dupes showed throughout that season to constantly show up, week-in, week-out, was incredible. If anyone believes in themselves, it’s that guy right there.”
Over the next 12 months, Kirifi captained the Wellington Lions to the NPC title, led the All Blacks XV on their end-of-year tour and skippered the 2025 Hurricanes. With the support of his fiancée, he turned down a contract to play rugby in Japan to “give it one last crack” to make the All Blacks.
“It helps that we’re both athletes because we know on that deeper level what it takes, and how to make the best decisions,” Reuelu-Buchanan says.
She admits she was “very upset” she wasn’t there when Kirifi made his All Blacks debut against France on July 5.
“The Stars were playing in Wellington against the Pulse at 4pm, and the All Blacks were playing in Dunedin that night,” she says. “But I knew it would the first of many games he’d play for them, and as long as there were people down there who love him [it was okay]. I was lucky enough to watch him the following weekend and the weekend after that.
“I feed off Dupes and his strength to back himself. His whole career people have told him he’s too small and he’s proved them wrong.”
Kirifi’s All Blacks call-up helped fuel Reuelu-Buchanan’s drive to add to her 13 Silver Ferns appearances. Next week’s squad camp will determine whether she’s named to face the South African Proteas and the Australian Diamonds to round out the year.
The camp clashes with the unveiling of her grandmother’s headstone, marking a year since her death. However, Reulu-Buchanan knows Nana Lola would understand where she needs to be.
“I want to make the Silver Ferns again. I will always have Commonwealth Games and World Cup in the back of my mind,” she says. “I got a little teaser when I was fortunate enough to be travelling reserve at the last World Cup, but sitting on the bench sucks.
“I want to be on that court.”
This story was originally published at Newsroom.co.nz and is republished with permission.