Netball: George now stars in lead role

Temepara George. Photo / Richard Robinson

It is hard to believe that Temepara George was once a reluctant leader. She has been the only captain of the Mystics since their inception but for a long time was unsure if she wanted the role.

She would lean heavily on the respective coaches of the franchise. A popular player, she sometimes struggled with the balance between being 'one of the girls' and forming the necessary link between the coaching staff and her team-mates.

Her doubts were accentuated by the form of the team, who rarely matched potential with performance.

"It was tough," remembers George. "I thought maybe it was because of me that we haven't been making the top four because I have been here since day one."

George was the Mystics' first signing back in 2008 and has carried the brunt of the criticism over the last three years.

How the wheel has turned. She has produced silver service on court throughout this season and played the quintessential captain's knock in the stirring win in Sydney last week.

"She always had the flair, intuition and vision," says Netball New Zealand high performance director Tracey Fear, "but what we saw in that [Swifts] game was some real control and ability to withstand pressure. We saw her take her team on her back with her through that match. She was the heart of that performance."

In 2011, leadership sits more comfortably. She is surrounded by a bunch of able lieutenants - senior players such as Anna Scarlett, Megan Dehn and Joline Henry - which puts her at ease at the easel.

"We have a lot of leaders in this team - I do the toss and say the last words before we go out on court but everyone takes charge and contributes as well. I think it is an easy job for me."

At one stage, George was almost lost to the Mystics. She was living in Townsville with former boyfriend Sione Faumuina when the ANZ Championship was announced back in 2007, and had lengthy discussions with then Firebirds coach Vicki Wilson about joining their franchise.

Eventually the persuasion of inaugural Mystics coach (and close friend) Yvonne Willering and the lure of home proved too much.

George made her international debut in 1996 and is playing her 15th season of top level netball. The game has changed immeasurably in that period, with the speed and physicality seemingly increasing every year.

The 35-year-old has taken it all in her stride and a relentless work ethic allows her to keep up with the young pretenders.

"She has been playing for a long while but you have to change in this game, otherwise you are not going to last," says Mystics team-mate Cathrine Latu. "If you don't keep up, it is going to overtake you. She has adapted to what is happening around her."

George pays tribute to Mystics' specialist midcourt coach Lyn Gunson, who is always "racking her brains" for ways George can improve - "from Lyn's point of view, there is always room for improvement," jokes George.

What she has developed is an eye for the moment. With maturity has come more patience; less looking for the spectacular one-handed long bomb into the goal shoot and more percentage, along with an ability to delegate and let go.

"When I was a youngster coming through, I wanted to get involved in anything and everything I could," recalls George. "Now it is about having that experience, picking your moments to try something and knowing when not to.

"It also comes down to believing in the players around you. When you start to go for every single ball, you can cancel out some players on the court as well. It is about having a better understanding of the position and the team game out on court."

Not that George has shelved the flair or sense of the spectacular. Her 178 assists rank her third in the league and she is one of the best readers of play in the sport.

"She has got an eye like no one else and can see stuff that no one else can," says Latu. "She seems to know what is going to happen before most people do. Most of the time when she has the ball, you just have to put your hands up and be ready because otherwise you actually might catch it with your face."

George was good in 2010, named the Mystics MVP, but has been superb this year.

The enforced four-month break through injury - which saw her miss much of the pre-season, as well as the Silver Ferns' January tour to England - has refreshed her mentally and physically, while some of international team-mates appear a little jaded, having played virtually non-stop since the the middle of last year.

In a landmark season, the Mystics face another hurdle as they take on the Magic in the preliminary final today.

Usually the underdog when these two sides meet - having won just one of eight matches between them - the Auckland team will take confidence and a new-found mental strength into the Hamilton clash.

"You saw glimpses throughout the season of that mental edge," says George, citing the last-gasp win in Perth as an example. "Usually the Mystics don't really come close in Australia but we beat them. There have been moments and now it is starting to click. Or as [coach] Debbie [Fuller] puts it - the penny is dropping."

Just like last week, her final message to her team will be earnest and to the point: "My last words will centre on possession and using it well," says George.

"I will remind them to take the match 15 minutes at a time.

"I will tell them that we are going to go out there and do everything and anything to win this game."