Down to business: Kate Moloney

By Stephanie Smarrelli 
 

Two goals. 

That’s all it took for the Adelaide Thunderbirds to put the dagger in the hearts of the Melbourne Vixens in 2024.  
 
For Vixens captain Kate Moloney, it was her second premiership loss in two years. 

And having tasted premiership glory twice before, the loss left the captain with a bitter taste. 

But she’s adamant, the heartbreak will only make the side stronger. 
 
“I won a premiership in my second year with the Vixens in 2014 and at that stage I didn't really understand how hard they are to win," Moloney said. 

“It took me another six years to win one in 2020 and for me the realisation of how tough they are to win sunk in when we won that one.  

“They’re bloody tough to win...you really need a lot of things to go right during the season to get there. To get so close this year only to fall right at the at the end was disappointing but it gives us more motivation heading into 2025.”  
 
Looking back on the Grand Final, Moloney is proud of the team for overcoming the mental barriers they faced following their Semi Final loss to the Thunderbirds. 
 
“In the Semi Final we got beaten by quite a bit, we’ll take a lot from how we were able to turn that around and come out fighting in the Grand Final to nearly get the win over the Thunderbirds,” she said. 

“We showed great improvements throughout season 2024 and we brought in some new girls and those combinations will continue to grow over this preseason, we're going to continue to get better and better heading into 2025.” 

The 31-year-old, believes the Vixens’ biggest strength was the team itself in 2024.  
 
“Last season we showed great depth within our squad,” she said. 

“We had quite a few injuries, we brought in a lot of players who had a great impact and when players get out on court and get that experience, they continue to get better and that's going to help us next season.” 
 
Moloney was particularly impressed with one area of the court. 
 
“The shooting combinations were a real positive for us,” she said. 

“Sophie Garbin, who's worked a lot with Kiera Austin and then having a young player like Lily Graham, who showed some real positives and pretty much came on when we needed her did an amazing job.” 
 
The captain also commended the side’s defenders for rolling through a variety of positions throughout the year.  

“We brought in Rudi Ellis who fit in perfectly with Jo Weston, Emily Mannix, and Kate Eddy. Rudi and Mannix, moved out to goal defence while Joey was out and then we had KEddy out for a long stint,” she said. 

“We had so many players improve on an individual level, that's a real credit to our coaching staff for someone like Rudi Ellis, who hasn't been in the starting seven to step up into that role on several occasions and then get rewarded with a debut in the Origin Diamonds squad was amazing.” 

Moloney is looking forward to the Vixens’ future, believing a couple of young guns really made their mark in 2024. 

"I'm excited about Hannah Mundy and Zara Walters in the midcourt, who I get to work closely with, they’re two young midcourters who are exciting for Australian netball,” Moloney said. 

“Hannah’s been around for a while, but this was her first time in a starting seven role, and she got better and better throughout the year and was also for the first time in the Diamonds squad.  

“Zara did an incredible job but unfortunately for her she was impacted by injury a lot throughout the year but when she got the opportunity, she took it with both hands. 

“Lily, Hannah, Zara and Rudi have so much potential and growth in them still that's really exciting for our club, I can't wait to see them get another full preseason under their belts to see what they're going to be able to produce next year.” 

Having only lost three games throughout the home-and-away season, there were plenty of other positives for the Vixens. 

"Every week you're trying to get better and better,” Moloney said. 
 
“We played some incredible netball throughout the season; we really improved our two-point shooting and went to the post more in the Power Five than we have before.  

“That was a real improvement for us, we set ourselves up really well going into finals but unfortunately couldn't get the job done.”  
 
The Vixens’ veteran is most excited for the fresh opportunity the new season brings. 
 
“The great thing about our competition is that every year it gets stronger and stronger,” she said. 

“We all start with zero points, we're all fighting out for the premiership trophy and every team's going to have to get better. 

“We're going to have to improve in all areas of our court; we're going to have to improve our ability to get ball, our ability to score two-point shots, we're going to need an improvement from every single one of our ten out there next year and that's something I'm really excited about.”  

With the Grand Final in Melbourne, the Vixens have an extra incentive to get there in 2025 but they’re not getting too ahead of themselves. 

"It's nice to see the Grand Final in Melbourne but there's a lot of work to be done before then,” Moloney said. 

“We'll have our eyes set on being there at the end of the year, but we know it will be hard, hopefully we're one of the two teams that can put their hand up to be playing in that game.  

“We love playing at John Cain Arena, it's exciting for netball in Victoria to have the Grand Final here and hopefully it's us battling it out in the final, but there's a lot of work to do.” 
 
It’s hard to single out some opponents who are harder to come up against than others but for Moloney there’s two she’s looking forward to meeting with again. 

“The Thunderbirds have had a great past two seasons and are back-to-back premiers which is super tough to do so I have no doubt they're going to be another tough team to beat next year,” she said. 

"The Swifts with Grace Nweke is going to be really exciting, they're going to be another difficult team to play next year.  

“Every league of every competition says there's no easy game, but there really is no easy game in Suncorp Super Netball, it's getting tougher every year and I can't wait to see what the season holds for everyone.”  

Looking back to the the beginning of her career, Moloney explained how the competition continues to evolve. 

“I started in 2013, which is scary to think about now, but the professionalism of our sport has just gotten bigger and bigger,” she said. 

“With that means more training, more resources and the athletes have gotten better and better.  

“When I started there was a cap on internationals and now that’s opened up, we're seeing more of the world's best netballers playing here and our competition is getting stronger and stronger.”  
 
With the future on her mind, Moloney hopes to leave a legacy at the Vixens. 

“I want to win another premiership with the Vixens,” she said. 

“I love working with the young midcourters and seeing them succeed is really exciting for me. 

“I've been lucky, the Melbourne Vixens have given me so much and I want to give back as much as I can to the club to make sure when I leave it's in the best possible spot it can be, that's my goal.”