Hockey: Indomitable Black Sticks spirit

Kate Mahon has heard all the sporting cliches - like playing each game as if it's your last - but her experiences have given the throwaway lines an edge.

Most rising sports stars catch the eye of selectors on the field of play but, in the case of Mahon, elevation to the national side to play in India early next month is as much about what she has demonstrated off the field in her battle with cancer.

Mahon spent little of last year on the pitch after being diagnosed with thyroid cancer in January 2004 following the discovery of a lump in her neck. She had urgent surgery to remove her thyroid and some lymph nodes. Radioactive iodine treatment followed and she was expected to be free of the cancer when she underwent a follow-up scan just before last year's National Hockey League [NHL].

The news was bad. Cancer had returned to her neck and she had further treatment which saw her miss all but one of the NHL games for North Harbour, although somehow she turned out for the New Zealand under-21s in the junior world cup qualifying series against Australia in Wellington last December.

In sporting terms, the year was a disaster and yet, come the completion of the NHL, the traditional showcase for national selections, Mahon was still promoted from the national development squad to the New Zealand squad. A couple of weeks back, national women's coach Ian Rutledge announced Mahon's selection to debut for the Black Sticks in the Indira Gandhi tournament in New Delhi.

Rutledge hadn't seen much of Mahon during the year but wants to see more. A hardened Australian with high expectations of his players, Rutledge has been impressed by the tenacity Mahon has shown throughout her illness.

"She hasn't missed a beat through it all," he said. "We have given Kate some leniency with her training over the last 16 months but she has never taken it. She has never once faltered and always took the opportunity to do the hard work."

Rutledge is keen to see how the 22-year-old wing-half measures up in India and in the NHL which started this weekend. As is Mahon.

Unlike most of the top players in the competition, who will be taking their participation pretty much for granted, Mahon assumes nothing.

"I'm naturally competitive, so it has been hard not being able to keep up with all the other players who have been progressing," she said.

Her initial operation and subsequent treatment have been very physically demanding and so has the anxiety. Her first diagnosis was frightening enough without having to go through the stress of having the cancer return last September when she had been told it was unlikely.

On the exterior, Mahon is confident and laid back but her body language changes when she talks about her experience with cancer. She is much more comfortable on the safe ground of her hockey future and isn't keen to analyse what changes it has made in her life.

"I could have chosen to step out of hockey for a while and concentrate solely on getting better but my style was more to go as hard out as I could, when I could."

Her challenges now lie on the hockey field.

First up is the NHL. Mahon has played for Harbour for four years and would love to see the side progress. A solid top-four contender, Harbour are yet to make a final and with the likes of Mahon and fellow Black Sticks Jaimee Provan and Lizzy Igasan, plus some developing talent, Harbour have the players to step up.

At the Indira Gandhi tournament, the Black Sticks will play Australia (world ranking third), India (15th), Russia (16th), Malaysia (25th) and Lithuania (26th).

New Zealand are ranked sixth in the world and will use the tournament to prepare for the Oceania Cup against Australia in late October. The series doubles as an Oceania zone qualifier for direct entry to next year's World Cup in Spain - and as part of the build up to March's Commonwealth Games.

Mahon is in her last year of a sports science degree at Massey University's Albany campus. She plans a teaching diploma next year with a view to becoming a teacher but if international hockey became a priority, nothing would suit her better.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY