'We want trophies': The Diamonds coach embracing pressure in pursuit of history

Link copiedShareShare articleThe Diamonds dress comes with expectations. Not hopes, not possibilities, but pressure. Every tournament is expected to end with gold. Every coach is expected to maintain a standard built over decades. Stacey Marinkovich understands exactly what that means. Stacey Marinkovich coaching the Diamonds during their series with Jamaica earlier this year. (Supplied: Netball Australia) Next month, the Australian coach will lead her side into another Commonwealth Games campaign carrying the weight that follows every Diamonds squad before them. But this particular team is chasing something even Australian netball's most celebrated eras could not achieve: defending both a Commonwealth Games and World Cup title in consecutive major tournaments. The challenge is enormous and the preparation window is microscopic. All the while, the rest of the world has never been closer. "I think this is the most intense, most competitive international netball has been," Marinkovich said. "For us, we've got our feet firmly on the ground because we have lost to an England in the past, and a Jamaica and a New Zealand. Stacey Marinkovich believes the global netball gap is tightening. (Getty: Morgan Harlow) Perhaps that is why the 45-year-old coaches with both ambition and caution. Marinkovich talks constantly about evolution, collaboration and connection — words shaped by a lifetime spent inside the sport. Stacey Marinkovich as a young junior growing up playing netball. (Supplied) Long before she was appointed the 15th Diamonds coach — a role responsible for protecting Australia's netball legacy — Marinkovich told ABC Sport she was just a young girl in Brisbane who simply loved the game. She plied her craft at Metro District Netball Association, where her father, Glenn Rosman, served as chairman. She idolised Australian greats Vicki Wilson and Michelle den Dekker and dreamed of one day becoming a Diamond herself. "When she was young, in her first couple of training sessions, she asked about joining the Australian team," Rosman said. "She's always had that ambition and drive, more so than any other kid I've known." The Diamonds suffered a shock loss to Jamaica at the 2022 Commonwealth Games before beating them in the final. (Getty Images: Sue McKay) Now she's using those qualities for some of her greatest coaching challenges, which only present while at the helm of a national sporting team. Unlike professional club programs that spend months together, Marinkovich often has just days to mould a squad into a gold-medal-winning outfit. "We'll have four training sessions in Melbourne and then another four in Edinburgh as a group together, before the games start in Glasgow next month," she says. And there'll be no "easing" into their Commonwealth Games campaign — they play Tonga on day one, followed by England just 24 hours later. Hitting the ground running is why there's such great emphasis on Marinkovich and her selectors to nail the make-up of the side they will take over. Stacey Marinkovich says preparation will be key for a condensed tournament where she can only take 12 players. (Supplied: Netball Australia) This week, the 2026-27 Diamonds squad of 18 players and four invitees was unveiled. Later this month a final cut of 12 players will confirm who travels to Glasgow. Despite signing her first full-time Super Netball contract this year there was no guarantee Jessie Grenvold would get a lot of court time. But through injury, the Mavericks defender took on a starting spot and is now an Aussie Diamond. Injuries, versatility and combinations all become critical considerations in a condensed nine-day tournament where there is little room for error, up to seven matches played and no replacement options once competition begins. "You're going through all the what-ifs," Marinkovich said. "I think the part that sits on my shoulders is making sure that we've got the right mix of players for the right tournament. "If this player went down and we're left with 11 players to play, how much rotation have we got?" Marinkovich says form in the Super Netball competition doesn't always guarantee selection. (Getty: Graham Denholm) Performances in Super Netball don't always guarantee selection. "To pluck someone out that is in the best form but never played against an international opposition or played in connection with others … you've really got to have a good understanding of how you're going to be able to manage that," Marinkovich said. The phone calls, she says, are always the toughest part of the job. "You're making players' dreams come true by saying that you're in and then you're pretty much taking that dream away when you're having to make the other call," she said. "It's a highly emotional [call] and just really respectful to the players, they invest a lot of time "It's just making sure the conversations are honest, they're authentic and they're real … that's just the nature of the

'We want trophies': The Diamonds coach embracing pressure in pursuit of history

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