It was a case of the right time and right place for Sunbury Jets recruit Emma Mahady.
Having returned home to Albury-Wodonga in recent months after stints in the US and Queensland, Mahady was considering what her next basketball step would be.
An approach from Sunbury Jets coach Kennedy Kereama was all it took for Mahady to join the Big V team.
“Kennedy coached me back in Albury- Wodonga when I was 15,” Mahady recalls.
“I was open to locations and Melbourne worked out in more ways than one.
“Kennedy opened up an opportunity for me to come down to the Jets and keep working on my game. I thought it was a good idea … it’s just one of those things that came together.”
Mahady has come a long way since Kereama coached her when she played in the country’s second-best competition, the SEABL.
Mahady was just 16 when she made her debut for the Lady Bandits and she last played in that competition as a 20-year-old.
She then spent four years at the California University of Pennsylvania, for whom she played a major part in a very successful senior year.
“I had a good four years there and learnt a lot,” she said.
“I made a lot of friends and had some fun – it was a good experience.
“In my last year, we were the national champions of our division [NCAA division 2].
“Personally, I made the all-conference first team and got an honourable mention as an All-American, which I never thought would happen.
“I also scored 1000 points in my senior year … never thought that would happen either. It was a good year.”
Mahady said her basketball game had developed a lot in her four years at college.
“The thing I learnt most was that hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard,” she said. “We weren’t the most talented team but we worked the hardest. Hard work does pay off.”
After returning from college, Mahady played in the Queensland Basketball League.
“I went straight from college up to Queensland,” she said. “I think I only played about half a season, but it was good experience.”
Kereama believes Mahady has potential to be a WNBL player.
Mahady herself just wants to be the best player she can be.
“I go hard all the time,” she said. “My effort is always there, but sometimes I don’t pull it off as well as I should.
“Some days aren’t as good as others, which happens. I always try my best and if one thing isn’t working, I look to another thing to get that one going.”
