KEY POINTS:
Most people would do anything for family. For former Silver Fern midcourter Sonya Hardcastle that meant lacing up her netball shoes again and coming out retirement to be a part of Netball North's national championship campaign.
After eight years in the netball wilderness, Hardcastle's unexpected return to the court was the result of a fair bit of "encouragement" from her mother, Marcia, who with Natalie Millicich, has taken over the coaching reins of the North Harbour side this year.
But far from being a chore, Hardcastle is relishing being back on the court.
She said, after a stint of club netball with the Commodores on the North Shore, she rediscovered her passion for the game.
"It's a bit like going back to an old love that you'd left behind a long time ago," the 36-year-old said.
"You get back on the court and you remember why you played the game and the body still responds and does some of the old tricks it used to do years ago."
Hardcastle, who was renowned for her speed, daring and deceptive style, was first selected for the Silver Ferns in 1992 as a 20-year-old by then-coach Lyn Gunson, who is now a technical adviser for the North Harbour side.
But she encountered a major speed bump early on in her career with a back injury keeping her out of the game for several years.
Hardcastle returned to the team in 1996 for three years under coach Yvonne Willering and was a member of the Silver Ferns heart-breaking 1999 World Championship campaign.
The following year, at 27 years of age, Hardcastle retired from all forms of the game.
Until now.
Before turning out for North this year, Hardcastle hadn't played top-level netball since the 2000 Coca-Cola Cup season with the Force.
She said her first hit-out for North, against Western earlier this month, was a bit of a wake-up call, with the game now much faster and more intense.
"It's a huge step up, I have to admit. It's a lot more intense than what I remember from NPC level," said Hardcastle, who runs a yoga and meditation centre from her North Shore home.
"I found the game has become a lot more physical, there's a lot more contact involved.
"That's not really anything new to anyone who's been watching the game for the past couple of years but when you're playing it again it definitely hits home," she said.
Hardcastle has obviously coped well with the transition as Netball North share the top of the division one points table with crosstown rivals Auckland Waitakere.
The logjam at the top of the table adds even more spice to tomorrow's local derby with both side's seeking to get themselves into the box-seat heading in to the championship week in Rotorua.
Auckland-Waitakere pipped North for the provincial crown last year but Hardcastle said that has not been playing on the minds of the players this week.
She said they only need to look as far back as last week's shock 49-47 loss to Waikato for motivation.
After leading by as many as 13 goals early in the match, the North Harbour players let their guard down in the second half and allowed an inexperienced Waikato line-up to sneak away with a win.
"We're really pumped after a pretty disappointing loss last weekend.
"Our training has been about bringing the intensity and also demanding more from not only ourselves, but also each other."
With the likes of Hardcastle and Northern Mystics stars Temepara George, Vilimaina Davu and Catherine Latu in the line-up, North are one of the favourites to win this year's national championships.
But with a tough final round robin match-up against Otago to kick off next week's finals campaign in Rotorua, Hardcastle said a win against Auckland tomorrow is vital to ensure her side remained in control of its destiny.
"The top four is not guaranteed at this stage.
"We need to make sure that we're not in a situation where it depends on another team winning or losing to make the finals."
The former Fern's return to competitive netball is all the more remarkable, given she has combined it with full-time study. Hardcastle is taking a health sciences degree at Auckland University with the view to later studying medicine.
"It's pretty full-on doing study, plus the training at this level."
With her university studies needing a 60-hour a week commitment, Hardcastle is quick to rule out any suggestion she could play ANZ Championship netball. "It's a huge step up in terms of training and commitment for the girls and there's a lot of other things I want to do."
HOW IT ALL WORKS
The new format, which replaces the Scottwood Trust Champs, was developed by Netball New Zealand and its 12 regions to give more match play opportunities for up-and-coming players.
The National Champs now more closely replicates the ANZ Championship environment, with home and away games for first-grade teams.
HOW IT ALL WORKS
* The 12 teams in the first grade were divided into two divisions based on final standings from last year's championships. The top six ranked teams form division one, while the bottom six teams form division two.
* Round robin matches are played within each division in the four weeks before the championship week, with the final round robin match played during the tournament in Rotorua.
* After completion of the first phase teams within each division are re-ranked from one to six.
* The top four teams (1-4) go on to fight it out for the Perry Foundation National Championship title.
* The remaining two teams in division one (5-6) play off to decide which team will be safe in division one for the following year, with the loser of the match going on to play a promotion-relegation match against the top team from division two.
* Meanwhile, the top two ranked teams in the second division will play off for the right to go through to the promotion/relegation game against the bottom team from division one. The losing team will remain in division two for the following year.
* The bottom four ranked teams in division two will play off to decide the final rankings from 9th to 12th positions.
