Being a part of the South Coast Blaze family has been an enjoyable experience for Fiji Pearls star Kalesi Tawake and under 21 players Yvonne Nalewbau and Susana Rasaubale.
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The trio, who are playing their last game for the Netball NSW Premier League outfit on Wednesday night before heading back home to Fiji on Thursday, have also really enjoyed the off-court activities they have undertaken as part of a PacificAus Sports immersion program supported by Netball Australia.
In fact all three told the Mercury they especially loved visiting Kangaroo Valley.
The girls have also been fully immersed in the Blaze's high performance programs over the past couple of weeks, participating in training and completing strength and conditioning sessions.
Kalesi actually got the opportunity to make her debut for the Opens side in round 1 of Netball NSW Premier League last Wednesday night.
Off the court, the girls have been immersed into Aussie culture, recently travelling to the Junee home of the South Coast Blaze administration manager Rob Vergano, where they were able to experience rural farm living.
The Fijian players also recently completed a team bonding camp with the Blaze side in Kangaroo Valley.
The trio were in agreement this was one of their highlights of their time in Australia.
"The most beautiful part of me being here was going to Kangaroo Valley and doing kayaking for three hours and other activities with my two Fijian friends Yvonne and Kalesi," Susana Rasaubale said.
"I find this trip enjoyable and also very interesting because I got to learn different types of land trainings and new skills and made lots of new friends."
This view was shared by Yvonne Nalewbau, who added she had learned a lot from her Blaze coaches.
"Learning new netball skills and netball drills from Marj and Kim and the other Blaze coaches is something I will take back to Fiji," she said.
"I've really enjoyed the experience and having the exposure of playing in a different environment against international girls."
Kalesi Tawake added being exposed to a different kind of training environment and coaches is what she enjoyed most.
"It was a wealth of experience that was shared to us. It's something we don't often get back home," she said.
"I know it will definitely help improve my game on court and also help in my personal growth as a young woman and athlete.
"Some of the learnings that I will take back home is the intensity and the importance of repeated court efforts and the importance of rest, fuelling the body pregame and post-game.
"I'm just grateful to be here and to experience this immersion program with Susy, Yvonne and the Blaze family."
This is the second time the Blaze has participated in the immersion program, and comes after the club's recent visit to Fiji to compete in the Aus-Fiji Quad series.
South Coast Blaze open's head coach Marj Parr said it was a pleasure having the Fijian players at the club.
"They'll be competing on Wednesday night , which we're particularly excited about and proud of because it will be the first time we've actually had our Fijian international sisters take the court in the red dress.
"So it's an exciting and an important moment for our club," Parr said.