Evering pumped up for int'l return

Robert Bailey, Gleaner Writer

After more than a year and half on the sidelines because of a knee injury, national senior representative Kasey Evering is scheduled to make her return to international arena for the Sunshine Girls in the American Federation of Netball Associations (AFNA) Championships, which will be held in Trinidad and Tobago from July 13-21.

The 30-year-old Evering, who last represented Jamaica in 2011 against Australia - when the series ended 1-1 - told The Gleaner in an interview yesterday that she is very anxious to resume her international netball career.

"I am eager to get back out there," said Evering.

"I am coming off a knee injury and so I really want to know where I am at and what I need to work on, and so this championship is really a stepping stone for me," she said.

Knee injury

The tall defender aggravated her knee on April 3 last year while representing Canterbury Tactix in the ANZ Championships, which is played in Australia and New Zealand, during a collision with her former national teammate, Carla Borrego, who plays for the Adelaide Thunderbirds.

"My knees are fine and so I am just going to continue to work hard in gym on strengthening them one day at a time," said the lanky defender.

Evering, who along with captain Nadine Bryan are the most senior players in the Sunshine Girls squad, headline a 12-member squad selected by the Jamaica Netball Association to represent the country in the one-week championship.

The rest of the squad members are: Jhaniele Fowler, Sabrina Spence, Anna-Kay Griffiths, Vanessa Walker, Kimone Tulloch, Patricia McCalla, Malysha Kelly, Vangelee Williams, Sasha-Gay Lynch and Shameera Sterling.

"It's always good to represent my country and I love representing my country and wearing the national colours," said Evering, who was a member of the Sunshine Girls team which finished fourth at the Commonwealth Games in India in 2010.

"I am just going to go there with my experience and try to do my best and contribute to the team in whatever way I can, so that we can win the championships and take home the trophy back to Jamaica."

Dominating the championships

The Sunshine Girls have been dominating the championships over the years, but despite this, Evering said they will not be taking their opponents lightly.

"The team has been working really hard and the coach has been drilling us very hard," she said. "I think that we are prepared mentally and physically for this tournament because we are the top team in the Caribbean, and we want to keep it this way by winning this tournament," Evering said.