KEY POINTS:
Belinda Colling's stint helping coach the Sting in the past few weeks has made her determined to return to netball - not as a coach, but as a player.
The former Silver Ferns captain was invited to assist Robyn Broughton from the bench in the Sting's last crack
at the National Bank Cup. Colling came on board not long after the birth of her daughter Perri, now 12 weeks.
While Colling's time courtside has been enlightening, it has only made her eager to return to the court.
"I definitely prefer playing to coaching, and I still have a lot of aspirations to play. If I can get my body back into shape, I'd like to play in the Tasman Trophy next year," Colling said.
The 30-year-old former shooter, who played 91 tests for New Zealand, says she will need rehab on her old knee problems if she is to play again.
"My knees have been pretty bad post-pregnancy, and I can't run on them yet," she said.
But Colling is still able to play a part in the Sting assault, offering advice to their attack as the six-time champions face their second-life semifinal tomorrow night against the Magic - a replay of last year's final.
Colling, who was part of the Sting line-up last season, admits she didn't expect the Southlanders to have to play this elimination match in their bid to make the historic last NBC final.
"I was pretty sure we would be able to go straight to the final. But the Force played a heck of a lot better than us last week," she said. "We'll need the old cliches, I'm afraid - doing the good old basics well. We need to be more menacing on defence, and more clinical on attack. But I have faith in them."
Colling might be missing from the sideline tomorrow - she and her partner, Highlanders first five Charlie Hoare, and their two children are bound for England on Saturday for a wedding.
It hasn't been a simple return to the game - having to travel, often twice a week, from Cromwell to Invercargill with a new baby in tow. But working alongside Broughton has given Colling a new perspective on coaching, and it's something she believes all netballers should experience.
"As a player you only worry about yourself, but as a coach you're on the emotional rollercoaster with every player," she said.
"It's been really good to understand the pressures Robyn carries in the community. She puts a hell of a lot of time into that team. Her knowledge just rolls off the cuff so easily, and she amazes me how she comes up with such good stuff every training, without anything written down on paper.
"But I'm still not terribly interested in coaching. I think I could do this, but you want to go full steam into it. It's all or nothing, and I don't think I'm ready for that."
* Tickets for next week's final have all but sold out at the 3800-capacity North Shore Events Centre. Five hundred tickets have been reserved for fans of the yet to be decided opponents.
Cup semifinal
Sting v Magic
Invercargill, 7.30pm tomorrow