Kate Lloyd in her Tactix gear from last season, accompanied by her parents, Wayne and Sharon, Photo suppliedExcited Ashburton netballer Kate Lloyd is packing her bags for Hamilton this week for a season with the Western Bay of Plenty Magic.

Lloyd, 20, was named in the squad last August after returning from the Netball Youth World Cup in Botswana with the triumphant New Zealand Under 21 side.

Since then the 192cm defender has been finishing her studies and hitting the gym so she is ready for the tough season ahead.

Lloyd and her mum Sharon will be driving up on Thursday and Lloyd will live with three other Magic players for the duration of the ANZ Premiership season.

Last year she was part of the Mainland Tactix line-up, spreading her time between the top team and the Beko development league team.

Following the world cup, she concentrated on her studies at Lincoln University, where she is on a netball scholarship.

She is studying towards a Bachelor in Sport and Recreation Management, and loving it.

The university has given her the flexibility to study around her netball commitments and she will focus on her books outside the main season.

For the past few months in Ashburton, she has been working on fitness and weight training, as well as attending some training weekends in Hamilton with her new team-mates.

The gym sessions are aimed at building muscle, power and speed.

Lloyd says the work is paying off and she sees muscle tone on her former “stick” body.

She is keen now to begin the next phase of her netball career, under the guidance of coach Marg Forsyth and former New Zealand defender Casey Kopua, who is in her 15th season for the Magic.

Lloyd said she has a great opportunity to play alongside and learn from Kopua.

“I think of her as a mentor and another coach.

“She is a pretty cool girl and great to talk to.”

Forsyth rates Lloyd’s range and mobility and says the Magic squad has a strong balance of experience and youth that is important for future seasons as well.

Lloyd’s family and friends plan to be courtside for as many Magic games as they can and the former Ashburton College player says that support means a lot.

“There’s a little bit of Vegas in me every time I take the court.”

Linda Clarke © The Ashburton Guardian - 24 January 2018