By Stephanie Smarrelli
It’s been a whirlwind 18 months for up-and-coming defender Ashleigh Ervin.
From being a training partner with the Queensland Firebirds to debuting for the Sunshine Coast Lightning, the 20-year-old has experienced a rapid rise through the ranks.
So much so, that she was invited to train alongside the Origin Australian Diamonds and is now preparing to play at the Fast5 Netball World Series.
And the best part? Ervin still has her best netball ahead of her.
FINDING HER HOME ON THE COURT
Ervin’s known for her sixth sense to hunt down the ball, but she almost followed an entirely different path on the netball court.
It’s hard to believe that the 192cm defender’s preferred position was at the other end of the court as a goaler.
A defender by trade, Ervin has also been a shooter. Ervin’s journey started in Sydney as a five-year-old who joined her local Woolworths NetSetGO program before joining a competitive local league.
Ervin started her career as a defender at Baulkham Hills in New South Wales before her family relocated to Queensland. It was there she developed into a formidable shooter while at Broadwater Netball Club.
In 2020 she joined the Bond University Bull Shark’s Ruby side, a team competing in Netball Queensland’s pathway competition that would then lead to the HART Sapphire Series.
While at the Bull Sharks Ervin started to realise her talents might be better used at the other end of the court where she first began.
“I had one really horrible year at goal shooter so was pushed back to defence. I spent a year getting flicked between shooter and defence and that was really confusing,” she said.
“I felt like I was throwing away a really good opportunity because I couldn't get a goal in, and I started hating training because I was doing so badly, I felt really insecure in my ability.
“I didn't question whether I wanted to play but I learned from it because it was really challenging. I think going through that has made me a better player.”
When it came time to get serious and make a call between the two positions, she went with the one she enjoyed the most, and the rest was history.
When it was decision time, Ervin cemented her place in defence. “Getting intercepts and doing defensive work really excited me and that's what persuaded me to go back to defence,” she said.
“I was sort of forced into that call but I really did enjoy defence and I feel as a player I've got that sort of brain.”
A few years later, the defender’s flair has seen her catapulted into the Suncorp Super Netball league with Ervin debuting earlier this year for the Sunshine Coast Lightning.
Reflecting on her fondest netball memory Ervin highlighted moments throughout her journey.
“Getting the call to go to Lightning, then when I debuted it felt like it was all put into place, it just felt so right,” she said.
“I still can't even believe how lucky I am to say that I play sport with my friends for a living.”
LESSONS FROM ORIGIN DIAMONDS CAMP
Ervin was recently invited to participate as one of four invitees to the Origin Diamonds camp ahead of the Constellation Cup and South Africa Series.
An experience the defender made the most of to develop her craft in the Diamonds environment.
Ervin is set to make her Fast5 debut this weekend. “Learning off Courtney (Bruce) and seeing what it takes to be an effective defender. Watching how controlled they were, their footwork and how mongrel they were in the game play. I could really see what it took to be a Diamond,” she said.
“They were all so willing and open to share the information and help people coming through even the shooters and Court in defence. I found that everyone was just so helpful.”
The biggest takeaway for Ervin was experiencing firsthand the step up from SSN she’ll need to take if she aspires to one day don the Diamonds uniform.
“Seeing what it takes to get the ball it's so hard at that level, you really have to get your feet under you and get up tall. I can really see how much I have to work on in that sense,” she said.
When asked which Origin Diamond she’s been inspired by Ervin quickly named former Australian captain Laura Geitz.
“She’s probably my favourite player, defence is part of it as that’s what I love so much. She's got to be one of our best defenders we’ve ever had,” she said.
“Geitz was so aggressive when she played but so smart as well and she's really helped me and is how I want to see myself as a player.”
THE FAST5 OPPORTUNITY
Looking ahead to Fast5 Ervin is excited for the opportunity.
“I’m really looking forward to the challenge, I've predominantly played goal keeper but I'm really excited if I happen to get out in goal defence,” she said.
“I think it's going to be really hard in the short periods that you're on, but I'm really excited to see what I'll do in that time and how I react to that.”
Reflecting on when she received the news Ervin was surprised by the call up.
“I didn't know that the team was going to be selected so early so I was really surprised. I’d done some training sessions with Stacey leading up to the Diamonds camp and after one of the sessions I had with her she pulled me right back and told me I was in Fast5 and I was really excited,” she said.
Without the support of a wing defence to lay groundwork in front of her the defender acknowledged the change in dynamics of Fast5 compared to traditional netball.
Ervin is excited to see how the dynamic changes with Fast5. “If you're out in goal defence you don't have that wing to support, you just have your centre so it changes a lot of defensive dynamics, you have to really work with what you've got,” she said
“But with having less attackers hopefully there's more opportunity to come out, it'll be really good to do a lot of hard one-on-one work. It'll be a big challenge, but I think it'll be really exciting to see what we can do in the defence.”
Ervin expressed her excitement to play against New Zealand’s Grace Nweke at the tournament.
“I've played her a couple of times in practice matches, she’s a very amazing player I find hard to get ball off her so I'm really excited to meet her again,” she said.
“But I'm also really excited to play Jamaica and Romelda Aiken-George, I was so surprised when I saw her named, but she's so amazing.”
Still in the early days of her career Ervin was humble thinking about the future excited at the prospect of taking her netball as far as she can.
“I would love to just have a really successful career, I would love to play for our Diamonds and play as long as I can,” she said.
