Former Swifts captain retires

A knee injury interrupted her 2018 season and saw the 29-year-old take time out from the sport to try and rehab. 

This year she lined up for the Swifts feeder team, the Waratahs in Australian Netball League (ANL).

After playing in ANL Grand Final McCulloch said it would be her last representative game.

“I’m very proud to have played for the NSW Swifts and been given the honour of captaining such a historic club,” she said.

“I grew up in New South Wales and dreamed of playing for the Swifts so to make that dream a reality is something I’ll always cherish.

“I’ve had amazing teammates, coaches and staff who’ve helped me along the way and am ready to look on as a fan while I look to the future. 

“It has been my absolute pleasure to wear the Red Dress.”

McCulloch came through the Netball NSW pathway and represented the state at underage levels before making her elite debut with the Queensland Firebirds in the 2013 Trans-Tasman ANZ Championship.

She returned to her home state in 2014 and went on to play for the Swifts in back-to-back ANZ Championship Grand Finals before taking over as captain for the onset of Super Netball in 2017. 

In an Instagram post, the midcourter also announced her retirement.

"It didn’t come about the way I had planned or would have wanted, but my entire netball journey was done the hard way," she wrote.

 

 

 

 

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And I’m done... It didn’t come about the way I had planned or would have wanted, but my entire netball journey was done the hard way. From being told I would never make it to being sat down season after season and told I had to wait for other ‘better’ players to say no before my contract would be re-offered to longterm injuries. But those hardships made me the player, leader, person I am today and introduced me to some of my best friends. Six years as a professional netballer, two as captain, 80 caps, three grand finals (all losses), six underage national championships and most recently a silver medal with the NSW Waratahs. The plan was to get myself back to SSN this year but my body is having none of it and I’m pretty happy with where I have landed despite how it all went down at the end of last season and how badly I struggled those first six months. So thank you to everyone that has played a part in my journey, whether your influence was positive or not, but especially to my family and friends. Time to refocus, have some fun, travel a bit, finish renovating my house, get a real job, make some decent money and enjoy a game or two with my Sutherland Stingrays girls✌🏽.

A post shared by Abbey McCulloch (@abbey_mcculloch) on Jun 30, 2019 at 5:33pm PDT

McCulloch has been a professional netballer for six years and within that time she has 80 national league appearances. 

While she planned to get herself back into the Super Netball competition, her body wasn't letting her.

"My body is having none of it and I’m pretty happy with where I have landed despite how it all went down at the end of last season and how badly I struggled those first six months," McCulloch wrote.

"Time to refocus, have some fun, travel a bit, finish renovating my house, get a real job, make some decent money and enjoy a game or two with my Sutherland Stingrays girls."