In 2023 Izzi Phillips missed out on tickets to watch the sold-out Netball Super League Grand Final. In 2024, not only was she there but she helped London Pulse secure the bronze and picked up the NSL Young Player of the Year award after an outstanding debut season.
With maturity beyond her years and the backing of Pulse director of netball Sam Bird, the 18-year-old’s rise over the past 12 months has been nothing short of meteoric.
But it has not all been plain sailing for the A-Level student, who returned to netball at the start of last season after recovering from a career-jeopardising broken leg.
The mid-courter admitted her call up to Pulse’s 12 came as a huge shock but a seamless transition made her look right at home in the starting seven.
She said: “Sam texted me saying she was going to call me in a few hours. I was thinking, ‘What is this cryptic message, what does it mean?’.
“I thought there would be a training partner role on the line – when I had that call I had no idea and said yes before I’d even thought anything through.
“I’m not naïve to the fact that it is a big step up but the fact that she saw my ability and my talent meant so much.
What a way to make your debut 😍
🔁 @Pulse_Netball centre, Izzi Phillips makes a well read turnover for her team.#NSL2024 | #SeeUsNow pic.twitter.com/mjW2wLocGd
— Netball Super League (@NetballSL) February 17, 2024
“I was out for a good seven months with my leg and I was constantly around that netball environment.
“Seeing everyone playing and progressing while I was on the sidelines was hard, I’m one of those people that wants to be up there doing everything I can.
“It makes it so much sweeter coming off the back of an injury and 12 months later being in the place I am now – when I look back the growth is genuinely insane.”
Injury is no small obstacle for netball players; from grassroots to NSL, the emotional and physical impacts can be a huge battle. For advice and guidance on how to work through injury, visit our NETBALLHer website.
Beyond the court, Phillips sat her first A-Level exams in May, after which she hopped straight on a plane with Pulse and travelled to Glasgow to play Strathclyde Sirens.
It would seem a daunting task to most but the starlet felt a huge sense of comfort in being with the club she has been with since the age of 13.
An undefeated season as captain of the under-19s, her first international cap and a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad & Tobago has given Phillips all the confidence required.
Delighted for our three Pulse pathway players winning Bronze with @TeamEngland @EnglandNetball #Trinbago2023 💗🖤🌹❤️🥉 Well done Ellie; Izzie and Captain Darcie pic.twitter.com/1LzUJR4RPd
— London Pulse Netball Pathway (@PulsePathway) August 13, 2023
She said: “This season I went in with no expectations, if I got no opportunity on the court, my goal was just to do as much as I could.
“Coming on in the second half of that Thunder game for my debut, I was just saying to myself to take those opportunities.
“The idea that I’m part of building Pulse’s legacy and getting us to a place like that is great and it has inspired me every game.
“Coming into the 12 I’ve automatically been taken under their wing. They’re so supportive and I can go to them for anything.
“I’ve seen the likes of Liv (Tchine) and Funmi (Fadoju) who have also been in this club for such a long time, they’re people I’ve always strived to be like.”
And Phillips was by no means just making up the numbers.
Phillips’ impact from the bench in the first game of the season saw her gain her first start in the NSL in just round two. This has translated into regularly making the starting seven, including in the NSL 2024 semi-finals and third-place play-off.
While the youngster has been indifferent at times with some of her designated roles within the team, Phillips has revelled in being part of the club’s close-knit family.
She said: “I’ve definitely been labelled the baby of the team, not by choice but I’ve had to take a few hits being the young one.
“We’ve got this huge dice we roll for our forfeits and no one wants to take it home.
“Instantly people were like “Izzi, you’re the youngest you’re going to have to take it”.
“It’s that idea though that we’re all one family.
🔙 2021 & 2022 – @FadojuFunmi
🗓️ 2023 – @berrineil
🏅 2024 – @izziphillipssx
There must be something in the water at @Pulse_Netball with all of the NSL’s Young Player of the Season award winners coming from this side over the last four years 💡 pic.twitter.com/3GqARgFYwU
— Netball Super League (@NetballSL) July 10, 2024
“A lot of us are homegrown and have come through the Pulse pathways but we also have so many people from all different parts of the country and the world.
“It adds so much because not only do we have London as a key part of our identity but we acknowledge everyone’s different style of play.
“We always have a bit of that extra flare because of that.”
Phillips’ flair is one that has elevated her this year from the Roses Academy into the Future Roses programme for the first time for 2024-25, topping off her successful debut NSL season.
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