NOW that the ANZ Premiership season has come to a close Draft Central takes a look back at some of the quiet achievers that effectively plied their trade throughout the year. The second spot on the countdown goes to youngster Kate Heffernan.

The up-and-coming midcourter enjoyed some more court time throughout the 2021 season with the centre proving that she has the engine to run all day and not skip a beat. Honing her craft as the starting centre, Heffernan highlighted her smarts to work her way into the match and effectively ply her trade for the Steel.

She was often overshadowed by some of the big names surrounding her such as George Fisher and Shannon Saunders which allowed her to burrow down and do what she does best – which is win ball. A more defensive minded midcourter given her wing defence background, Heffernan impressed with her ability to read the play and cleanly contest the ball. She ran amuck through the midcourt with her closing speed and deceptively long arms to bat ball away and regain possession for the Southern Steel. Credit to her versatility she also showcased her ability to slot back into that wing defence role when necessary, utilising her defensive traits and shadowing movements to stop her opposition in their tracks while her three-foot marking was a staple of her game play in either position.

It could be argued that her work was a key reason for the Steel’s success this season, finishing in third spot thanks to her composure and smarts with ball in hand. Heffernan had no issue swinging from defence to offence within a heartbeat and could fly up through the centre of the court within a second. But she also knew when to slow things down and take a more methodical approach through attack such is her netball nous. Still only young, Heffernan grew with confidence throughout the season and steadily added to her bag of tricks with her aerial ability often a main talking point.

The fast-footed midcourter was not afraid to throw herself at whatever came her way and used her speed to shut down the space in defence. She was a real pest around circle edge, causing deflections and turnovers aplenty while in attack she also upped the ante. Heffernan highlighted her ability to command ball at the top of the circle and most importantly execute passes with precision into the circle and to the advantage of her goalers. She was often a link between the two ends and despite having the most court space to cover was cool, calm and collected with ball in hand. Heffernan consistently re-offered and worked in overdrive to create space across the court making use of the angles to change things up.

In a true testament to her defensive mindset Heffernan finished the season with an impressive 39 deflections to her name, 35 pickups and 25 intercepts – the most of any midcourter. She was somewhat costly when it came to penalties amassing 134 but made up for it with her impressive endurance levels running out 920 minutes across 16 games. The centre also registered 298 feeds for the year showcasing her ability to get it done at both ends of the court.