HOCKEY
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
AFTER the toughest season of her young career, Bathurst hockey star Jess Watterson has been given a huge endorsement by the people that matter.
Watterson spent four months on the sidelines earlier this year after a serious ankle injury and must have wondered whether some major opportunities were passing her by.
But last week she was announced by Hockey Australia as part of a 30-strong women’s futures squad for 2014-15.
She is joined by seven fellow NSW players, many of whom she has played alongside at national under 18s and 21s championships.
The idea behind the futures groups is to identify an emerging crop of players with the potential to make the national junior squads within two years. There is a major focus on the 2016 Junior World Cup.
They will go through a combination of targeted Hockey Australia development activities, including ‘super camps’.
The first such camp which will be held in December on the Gold Coast.
“It’s a really good way to be recognised, especially after having probably my worst season in terms of the injury and how much hockey I missed,” the Souths Premier League Hockey player said.
“Definitely at the start of the season when I first hurt my ankle it was a bit of a worry, you don’t know how much hockey you’re going to miss and it is a bit scary to think about the tournaments and teams that you can miss.
“I’m not totally sure of everything that is going to be involved with this squad, but there are a couple of international teams touring next year and I think they are going to pick some teams to play against them out of the squad.”
The true class of Watterson was on full display at the Australian Under 21s titles in July as she helped her side to a win in the gold medal match against Queensland.
She finished the tournament as equal second-highest goal scorer despite next to no preparation physically.
She returned to club duties and helped Souths into the women’s Premier League Hockey semi-finals where they were knocked out by Parkes.
Though there were no outward signs of the problem that had plagued her earlier in the year, Watterson admitted that she had concerns that she wouldn’t recover her best form when it mattered.
She still has some issues with her ankle as well.
“With any big injury it is hard to come back and there are always going to be bits and bobs that don’t pull up well after a game or something, there’s definitely still some pain there from time to time,” she said.
“There is always that thought in the back of your mind that you could do it again and be back to where you were.
“For the time being though I’m doing a lot of training here at home and also going down to the NSW Institute of Sport every weekend.”