UNSURE if the 2020 Suncorp Super Netball season was going to go ahead, Round 1 kicked off with a bang with Queensland Firebirds defender Kim Jenner proving the extended off-season had worked wonders. She asserted herself from the get go racking up intercepts and deflections aplenty against grand finalists Sunshine Coast Lightning.

“Yeah it was very exciting to get out there and play some netball again. It was great waking up on game day and having game day nerves and the excitement that came with it as well. It was awesome to be able to play in front of our purple family as well, it’s been a long time but we always love doing that,” Jenner said.

While it may be a new season the same pre-game routines come into play for Jenner with the somewhat superstitious defender not willing to stray away from her usual match day preparations.

“I probably have a bit of like a routine. I go to bed early the night before. I have pasta the night before and I always straighten my hair. So that’s probably one of my main superstitions, I have quite curly hair. So I always make sure I’ve got straight hair I just feel a lot more fierce and ready to go,” she said.

Entering her fourth season Jenner is no longer the new kid on the block but instead a seasoned campaigner despite only being 22. Oozing tenacity and excitement the young defender has a bright future ahead of her and has become a staple hold in the purple uniform over the past season.

“I’ve got a little bit more experience under my belt. So being able to go out there and know what it’s like and know what level you need to play at to be successful,” Jenner said. “So I guess, just continuing to build that confidence and continuing to build on the exposure and experience out there.”

Still developing her craft, Jenner’s main focus for the 2020 season is centred on creating a strong defensive unit that can win ball back and provide her attackers with a chance to score in hope to win more games than 2019.

“I guess just building that connection with the other defenders and being more consistent in playing to the end and playing to the last whistle and making sure that we’re still winning ball. We’re still doing our job all the way up to that last whistle,” she said.

Playing with the experienced Gabi Simpson in at wing defence and beside fellow youngster Tara Hinchliffe, the Firebirds are building a strong core of defenders that possess a wealth of ball winning skills with the captain well and truly leading the way.

“Gabi is such an incredible leader out there. So I’m very lucky and privileged to be able to play alongside her she’s amazing at being able to lift everyone around her and really push forward. She’s a very smart player and I’m very lucky to be learning from her,” she said.

Inside the defensive goal circle Jenner’s partnership with Hinchliffe is a clear focal point with the two making their way up through the ranks together and proving to the competition that they are no easy beats with their physicality and hunt for the loose ball.

“Yeah, it’s really exciting that me and Tara have been playing together for so long and we’re building on that connection. I guess, just each game our experience increases our time together increases as well. So we’re great at working through it together,” Jenner said.

“I guess we love it, as defenders our job is to make it hectic and to win the ball down back,” she said. “So whenever we’re, I guess, we’re feeling a bit low inside, connecting as a unit and having some time really pumped us up and when someone wins ball that really, really motivates the whole team a lot.”

It has been an unprecedented start to the season for all involved with the competition relocating to Queensland due to border restrictions. Meanwhile, the 2020 season is also playing host to a number of rule changes, none bigger than the introduction of the super shot and forcing teams to not only alter their attacking approach but so too their defensive methods.

“I guess it does throw a new spanner in the works and I guess we approach the game the same for the first 10 minutes of each quarter. But it does make you have to reconsider how you go about defending in those last five minutes, depending on what shooters are on, where they want to shoot from. So I guess you’re used to pushing your shooters as far away from the post as possible and now they want to be out there. So yeah, I guess it just switches your thinking.

Starring in the first three quarters and fading out in the fourth term against the Lightning, the Firebirds are faced with the Melbourne Vixens in Round 2 who are no easy feat given their strong connections and stellar shooting line-up. Boasting the likes of Caitlin Thwaites, Tegan Philip and Mwai Kumwenda under the post Jenner looks forward to the challenge of testing her skill against some of the world’s best goalers.

“Yeah, they are a very experienced shooting end. They shoot very well, in their Round 1 game as well. So it’s a great opportunity for us to go out there and play on some of the best, I guess, making sure we’re doing our role on our players as well, whatever that might be,” she said.