It has been a sometimes dark and challenging 350 days on the sidelines for former Queensland Firebirds co-captain Hulita Veve, yet the next three months could provide some of the greatest netball moments yet.
Following a possible career-ending ACL injury midway through the 2025 Suncorp Super Netball season, Veve has recently returned to the court for the ICare Group Australia Ipswich Jets in the HART Premier Netball League Sapphire Division.
Megan Lynch’s team is undefeated heading into this Saturday’s Round Three clash with Moreton Bay City Pulse at Nissan Arena, and will for the first time run out a full-strength list including Veve in a formidable defensive end.
"Everyone was excited for ‘H’ to come back to netball," Lynch said.
"She’s just such a beautiful person, cares about everybody, and is so welcoming and supportive. I love that kid, although she’s not a kid anymore. She’s put netball on the map for Tonga. They’re now a powerhouse that people are looking at, and it’s a tiny country."
Veve was left shocked and excited after last week’s Zoom meeting with Tonga Tala coach Jaqua Pori-Makea Simpson, when she was asked to carry the nation’s flag at the opening ceremony of the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
Having captained Tonga’s national team to its maiden World Cup appearance in 2023, Veve is now tasked with leading her country during what will be its debut Commonwealth Games netball campaign.
"It’s a big honour to carry the flag. Only one person from the whole country is chosen, which is huge for myself, my family and the whole nation,” she said.
"It’s a significant honour, and I didn’t think my name would be in the mix."
Tonga Tala, currently ranked eighth in the world, has been drawn to face Australia in its opening Pool A match on July 25.
"For Tonga to face Australia is wild for us, because in the netball space we were unranked a few years ago," Veve said.
"It was our first World Cup, now our first Commonwealth Games, so we’re being seen and that allows all Tongans to dream big."
It will be a poignant moment for Veve, who considered giving up the game were it not for seeking another chance to represent her nation.
"I had been pretty lucky my whole career with no injuries, so to do an ACL after 20 years of playing netball was a big shock," she said.
"Tonga netball was the only reason I continued, because of Commonwealth Games selection and the World Cup next year. I did a slow rehab, phasing in and out of motivation. It was tough with two kids and a full-time job, before the Jets said they’d take me in. They needed a GD so I said I’d play it. I just wanted to try something new as I’d fallen out of love with netball a little bit."
Lynch coached Veve during her underage representative years, when she was a circle defender and not yet the elite WD/C she is today.
"Why play her at GD? Because our GD/WD did her ACL in the pre-season and we didn’t have a replacement,” Lynch said.
"It may not be her position but she’s still getting those tips."
For Veve, a return to the court through the Jets has softened the blow of suffering a serious injury, and the subsequent loss of an SSN contract.
"The Jets said they’d take me in and it’s good to be back playing some netball before heading over to Glasgow," she said.
As for a return to the SSN competition, it’s not on her radar right now.
"I think I have achieved everything I set out to achieve and I’m happy with the career I have,” she said.
"If it happens, it happens. I’m here to play for Tonga and enjoy some netball before I finish."
Netball Queensland's NetballQ TV, the home of community netball in Queensland, is delivering live and free coverage of the state’s most exciting grassroots and pathways competitions, including the HART Premier Netball League Sapphire and Ruby Series. Click HERE to access NetballQ TV.
