Michaela Sokolich-Beatson rules out return to netball in time for Silver Fern campaigns

Michaela Sokolich-Beatson isn't preparing for a return to netball this year. Photo / Getty Images

Michaela Sokolich-Beatson may be on track to full recovery from a nasty Achilles injury but the Silver Ferns defender doesn't expect to hit the court any time soon.

The 23-year-old was devastated after rupturing her right Achilles tendon in a match in January against England A, just two days before the Silver Ferns' Nations Cup opener.

She returned home to New Zealand immediately before being operated on in Auckland and put into a moon boot for four weeks.

Now able to run again and the lockdown seeing the Silver Ferns international calendar pushed to later dates, the potential to get out on court this year seemed more likely for the young Mystics star.

But Sokolich-Beatson said she's preparing herself for the worst-case scenario being no netball for the rest of the year.

Michaela Sokolich-Beatson after getting surgery. Photo / Instagram

"I kind of know in my head that I won't be playing netball again until next year," she said.

"Even though everything internationally has been pushed back, that's not really my goal because I'm conscious that if I do try and focus on it if it doesn't happen, I'm going to be let down.

"I also don't want to reinjure myself. I want to make sure that I'm really ready before I go back into netball at that level.

"I've seen other people go through this injury and you just have to accept it and move on."

Sokolich-Beatson came out of a moon boot days before the country went into alert level 4 lockdown and was forced to come up with creative ways of continuing her rehab from home.

"We had some pretty interesting setups around my house," she said. "My dad made me a bench press out of some old scaffolding he had so that I could do some training for my upper body but also use it as weights to do calf raises.

"I also got a piece of plywood up against the wall and I would use it as a leg press. Lot's of weird and wonderful creations to help me through lockdown."

In her final year of a bachelor of physical education at the University of Auckland, Sokolich-Beatson plans to focus on her studies while netball remains on pause.

Ideally, she would like to be fit and ready for selection for next January's Netball Quad Series.

But Sokolich-Beatson is attending only one Mystics training a week, admitting the temptation to play would be too much if she went to more.

"I go along once a week only because it's a difficult thing to go along to. I can't do anything and I'm the type of person who will want to get involved," she said.

"Even at training, I get involved too much, more than I should. I know if I go too often, I'll probably be back on the netball court in two weeks' time and I know I'm not allowed to do that.

"I do try and help from the sidelines with things that I see. I have quite a good connection with Phoenix [Karaka] and I can be really honest with her and can give her my feedback from things I'm noticing rather than being in there helping how I'm used to."

This week's move to alert level 1 will see limitations lifted around live sporting events.

Although Netball New Zealand is yet to announce whether fans will be part of the resuming Premiership season, Sokolich-Beatson is confident she'll be allowed on the sidelines to support her team.

The ANZ Premiership starts on June 19.