Timboon Demons' Anna Archie on her return to the Warrnambool and District league, team's finals chances

The unique practice was to detach from a coaching mindset that had been common place for the A grader for the past three seasons.

Archie, who returned to the Warrnambool and District league this year with Timboon, said it had taken the first half of the season to adjust solely to a playing role under A grade coaches Carley Hickey and Bethany Hallyburton.

"I said to Carley and Bess at the start of the year I will struggle and I have," the midcourter told The Standard. "It's probably taken me until round nine to really switch off and just be a player and not keep diving into that coaching role mentally when I'm on the court.

"For me to get around that, it's a 10km run in the morning before I play netball just to try stop me from expending that energy that I've got into that role and just focus on playing."

The 35-year-old said while it had taken some time, she was enjoying the change.

"It's nice to turn off on a Saturday and walk away from the courts and not be worrying about the what ifs, what I should have done or what should we do on Thursdays," she said.

Archie, who moved to Australia from New Zealand in 2010, lined up for the Demons in 2011 and 2012.

She joined rival Nirranda as its A grade coach in 2013, before returning to her home country for the next five years. Returning to the Blues in 2019, she went on to win that year's Wilma Wallace medal as the league's best and fairest player.

Now, after a move to Swan Hill in 2020 where she was senior coach at Central Murray League's Lake Boga, she has returned to what she calls her "Australian home" in the south-west.

"I went up there (Swan Hill) for netball and work and had three-and-a-half years up there but thought it was time to come back down," she said.

Archie has fond memories of her time at Lake Boga.

"It was a club in a development phase, of getting everything back on track," she said. "My first season we had 10 weeks of pre-season, then COVID struck. It gave me a whole year to dig deep... and recruit some players in."

Archie led the Magpies to a finals position in 2021 before the series was scrapped, while they finished fourth in 2022. The club has started its 2023 season undefeated.

Undecided if she would play herself in 2023, Archie eventually decided on a return to the Demons. Arriving back at the club, she found just one player - Tanya McKenzie - remaining for her previous stint.

"Coming back in, there was a lot of new faces and a lot of the juniors and NetSetGoers have progressed into senior positions, it made me feel quite old," Archie said with a laugh.

She praised the club for its inclusive environment, cultivated by Hallyburton, Hickey and B grade coach Mel Benson.

"I've actually never walked into a club, or been part of a club, that has been so welcoming," she said. "I knew no-one and there was quite a few others in my shoes, and everyone speaks to everyone. We get there on a Thursday night, it's normally raining out here, we all warm up and train together and we split off - it's a really nice environment for 30-odd senior females to be in.

"You can have a really shoddy day or a hard weekend on the court, and everyone is just up-and-about regardless."

Archie is among a number of new A graders to join forces with the young side who defied their own expectations to make a finals run in 2022.

"The ones that have come in probably have a bit more experience and netball maturity on our side," Archie said. "It's been a really nice balance, to draw on what the younger girls, like Macy (Gale) and Danica (Clough), Nina (Barlow), Laura (Rosolin) and Tessa (Poot) had last year and try and extend them out a little bit more in gaining that trust and a little bit more stability."

Archie has noticed a momentum shift in recent weeks as coaches and players see the new-look side coming together.

"Just that shoulders dropping, relaxing and trusting within each other," she said.

Archie lauded Hallyburton and Hickey for their ability to adapt the way they coached this season.

"I think even they realise we're quite a different side this year," she said. "And they had to change up their approach which is a real positive thing for coaches to acknowledge that you can't just fold into last year's momentum. Quite often coaches will flow on from the last season and go on what they've done well previously for a different side and it doesn't work. I take my hat off to them."

Archie said accountability was a benefit of playing under off-court coaches, as she aimed to improve the defensive side of her game.

"It's quite nice having the likes of Bess, being a defensive coach, and Carley on the sidelines just to keep you honest and keep reminding you, you need to keep going, you're just about there," she said. "But I'm getting a bit long in the tooth and I just try to stay up-right and uninjured every Saturday so I'm happy when I come off the court and that's happened."

On her return to the Warrnambool and District league, Archie said there was always tiers within the competition, with the likes of Nirranda and Merrivale the yardstick.

"They're polished, I'd be lying to say they weren't," she said of last year's grand finalists. "When it's consistently spoken about, it's neat to have a run with them and see what it's all about."

Archie believes the Demons - who presently sit fifth on the ladder - are "quite unique" in terms of A grade outfit but have what it takes to push the best sides.

"We've got a bit of gusto about us and catch us on a good day and I think we could give majority of the teams above us a really good run," she said. "We have shown glimpses of it, we just need to string it together for those four quarters and that's what being a new team, you're a little bit slower on but we are picking it up. Everyone's on a bit of a roll at the moment, and it's neat, it's what its all about."

Archie is confident her team will be in the mix come September, but remains realistic on the challenge of beating out Nirranda and Merrivale for a grand final spot.

"I've got no doubt we'll be there (finals) at the end of the season," she said. "But you'd have to do something pretty special to upset them (Blues and Tigers) right now.

"I'd like to think from three-four-five-six-seven, wherever you're sitting, it's going to come down to the end of the season.

"I think we could really give Kolora-Noorat and Panmure a good nudge on a good day. It's there, it's just whether we string together those four quarters but it's definitely do-able. The girls are more than capable."