“The time and effort you put into training on the field and in the gym preparation counts.”
These were the word of young 18-year old Palais Representative, Magdelyn Swaki or “Magster” as she is known by her team.
Hailing from West Sepik Province, she has been playing with the Southern Chiefs Rugby club in the past two years while she trained with the train on squad for the Palais 7s team.
Earlier this year, I had asked her about her experience on the train-on squad and she proceeded to describe how it felt to be on the train-on squad but be under aged as well.
Swaki stated that it was tough on her as she felt down at times but she had family and friends who always pushed her to give her best at training and to not give up on the opportunities coming her way.
“Yes, I was under aged last year but I never put my head down, my coach kept encouraging me that even though I was under aged, I had a long way to go and to so not put my head down as well as to keep on working hard.”
“Olgeta support blo ol friends and families [All the support I got from my friends and families], I took it and gave my all at training. At that moment when I got that jersey, I felt relieved.”
She mentioned that this accomplishment meant a lot to her and thatit was just the beginning for more great opportunities to come.
She talked about how it felt standing in the field at the Oceania Qualifiers and also at the recent Pacific Games.
“Standing in the field, you’re not only representing yourself but your country, your province, your families, the people behind you like your friends, supporters and your sisters in the clubs that you play for as well. It meant a lot to me and I was excited as a teenager representing my country.”
During the Oceania Qualifiers, Magdelyn recounts that she was nervous at first but then she remembered that she had her sisters playing on the same team and that thought kept her going.
She reflected on the verse, Philipians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”, and said that through that text, running onto the field, even if she was nervous, she felt confident.
“In our first game against Solomon Island when I scored my first try against them, I felt so happy because it was my debutant try. I had tears of joy. I kept telling myself, if they can play, then we can play too. And after that I wasn’t nervous anymore in our other games against the other countries.”
“We put our bodies on the line for our country and played our hearts out.”
“We played for our friends and families and the support that they showed for us.”
The youngster was over the moon and shared about her experience at the Pacific Games as well describing it as a joyful moment for her and one she would never forget as the walk into the stadium in front of a crowd was nerve-wrecking but an amazing experience. We bonded with our team PNG athletes and athletes from the other provinces as well.
“Pacific Games when we went for the ceremony and each of the countries were going out, I had tears of joy in my eyes because it was my first time at an event like this and having to represent my country alongside my fellow athletes from other codes was amazing.”
She explained that she always pushed herself to work hard all through- out the games with the support of her coaches and team mates in her game, she learnt things like discipline, respect, trust.
“I learnt to be open and come out of my comfort zone because I’m not someone who necessarily talks too much.”
“I can say a lot of good things happened for me at that time like when I made a mistake in the field, my team mates encouraged me to keep my head up.”
“It was a tough game against the Fijians but when I scored the only try, even when we lost, it was a big win for me because I always heard them talking about the flying Fijians and I scored against them.”
“It was a great experience.”
“We had so much fun.”
Swaki is encouraging other teenagers out there not to give up on life and to get themselves into a sporting code and work hard to represent the country because she believes that other young people out there have the talent and the potential to do so.
“There are a lot of opportunities out ahead waiting for you, like playing sports can take you to places you would not expect to be in so I encourage everyone of you to stop violence and other activities that are bad and come play sports.”
“Come together and let’s fly our country’s flag high.”
“I know for a fact that we have a lot of talented boys and girls in the country and now is the time to show that we exist in this country, it’s time to give your best and let the spotlight be shone on you.”
“To be the best, you have to make sacrifices, your commitments to the training not only in sports but also in your education as well, time effort, as the saying goes, the hard work you put in training and in your studies showcases great results.