Netball: The Silver generation

As kids, they met on opposite sides of the volleyball net. But now that world netball champions Laura Langman and Casey Williams are on the same side, they are aiming for a magical treble.

So far this year, they've collected the National Bank Cup with the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic, then played leading hands in New Zealand under-21s' long-awaited victory at the World Youth Cup earlier this month. Next, the Silver Fern team-mates have their sights set on claiming their third tournament title of the year - the Scottwood national provincial championship in Dunedin next month.

Fresh from a rest after the world title win in the United States, Langman, a 19-year-old midcourter, and Williams, a 20-year-old defender, will start training this week with the Waikato side, defending its national title for a second year.

The friendship between the two stretches back well before their netball days, when they competed against each other at inter-school volleyball and athletics competitions.

Langman, who captained the New Zealand under-21 side, said it's been great having a friend like Williams alongside her during such a frenzied year, when both players also made it into the Silver Ferns touring 12 for the first time.

"It's cool to have had Casey there all the time - someone to talk about the same experiences, share a good laugh," Langman said.

Since returning from the World Youth Cup win - New Zealand's first in 13 years - both players took a break to concentrate on "catching up on the other half of our lives".

Williams, who grew up on a Matamata dairy farm, is studying at Wintec in Hamilton, hoping to enter Police College. Langman is working towards a degree in management studies, majoring in accounting.

"It's a good challenge for my brain, because I play so much sport. But it's a work in progress - I reduced my papers this year so I could go to the World Youth Cup. I took a huge accounting book with me to the States, and probably opened it twice."

Understandably, Langman's concentration was firmly fixed on the world youth title and her play against Australia for the Silver Ferns in June gave her the confidence to lead the under-21 side against some tough opponents - Australia in the semifinals and England in the final.

"It's a pressure cooker at international level, and it was so beneficial to have been in that situation, to be familiar with that pressure," she said.

"But I was in an amazing team, surrounded by such talented players. For a lot of us, it may be the one and only time we get to go to a world championship, so it meant so much."

Despite the exhilaration of 2005 so far, Langman said she won't have trouble getting motivated for the national provincial champs, starting September 26.

"I'm a person who finds it hard to stop, I like to be on the go 24/7, so I'm really looking forward to getting back on court," she said.

Waikato will start as favourites this year, with six Silver Fern squad members as its core. The year may not end there for Langman and Williams. The Silver Ferns have a home test against Australia on October 29, followed by a tour of Jamaica.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY