IT is often said that God does not pick the qualified, He qualifies the called.
And sometimes, certain plans do not come into fruition in the present because another better opportunity will come up later.
Some doors close where they should have opened and when they do open, it’s the manifestation of success at a greater capacity than one could ever imagine.
For Fiji Baby Pearls netball player Anatolia Nuku, her steadfast faith in God, in the underlying principle that only in Him can those closed doors open has been her guiding star through a long selection phase and eventually her selection in the team for the 2025 Netball World Youth Cup in Gibraltar this week.
Baby Pearls: A safe space
Nuku believes her young teammates are a band of players in which she says is a community she feels safe in.
It’s a statement that evokes a desire to understand how profound their connection as a team is and how the combination of players from various clubs and backgrounds gives way to a culture of unity, strength and resilience in such a young team.
Being far away from the sunny skies, the clear sand on the shores, and the hustle and bustle of life in Fiji is enough to feel homesick and yet for these players, Nuku says that being together in the spirit of flying the noble banner blue in Gibraltar is what keeps her and her teammates going.
She is one of seven locally based players selected for the Baby Pearls for the 2025 Netball World Youth Cup, which gets underway in Gibraltar from tomorrow.
‘A ‘hell’ of a ride’
At 19-years-old, the young lady from Namalata, Tavuki, Kadavu with maternal links to Yaroi, Matuku, Lau already has a lot going for her.
Besides being a part of the national team where she plays the role of centre and wing attack on the court, she is also a first-year-student at the University of the South Pacific.
At the Pacific’s premier academic institution, she is studying law and sociology in which her bubbly character and charm align with her inclination towards pursuing an academic qualification in the study of humanities.
She is also part of the Lomaiviti Netball Club and is a former student of Suva Grammar School.
For Nuku, her journey into netball was a different one; she joined an under-12 netball team at only seven-years-old in where she recalled herself as being “all over the place.”
When she turned nine, everything then fell into place when she said she became part of a netball team at Veiuto Primary School in Suva.
“So I guess it all started from there and then I got into netball clubs – Lomaiviti, and then the journey went on from there,” she recalled.
“I would say it was fun; it was quite a fun experience.”
During her interview with Times Sports, this newspaper observed her light up with enthusiasm at recounting her early days in the sport and how the memories made her speak at great length of how that period of time had set the foundation for her journey onward in the sport.
“And yet, when things got serious, when I discovered that I was really good at it and I really liked it a lot, there were a lot of challenges that we faced along the way.”
Like every trial and tribulation life will hand anyone, overcoming it was not an overnight miracle but rather a gradual ascension of brushing off the dust of uncertainties, picking up the pieces and never letting it break their stride, move on yet higher and stronger.
“But then overall, I’m grateful. We were able to overcome them with a group of girls so yes, it’s been a hell of a ride,” she said.
“But yes, I would say I’m grateful for the journey.”
‘My walk with Jesus’
Getting this far has not been an easy journey for her, and she said a key element in her push towards success was her steadfast faith in the Lord.
“I would say my walk with Jesus,” she replied when asked what her biggest form of support had been.
“There’s a lot of things that happened along the way, things that I wanted but then I didn’t get what I wanted, but then those plans that I didn’t get, it was God’s protection,” Nuku said.
“I would say I got what I needed but then it was God’s protection not giving me what I wanted.
“There were tournaments that were happening along the way where I thought that I’d make the team but then there were a lot of complications that happened when they were there
Meanwhile, Nuku’s answer on how she felt about being selected to be a part of the Fiji Baby Pearls indicated how she regarded her selection into the team and the way it signified the essence of hard work, determination and strength paying off immensely.
“Being part of the Baby Pearls team, it’s something that I’ll always be proud of,” she told Times Sports.
“It’s something that I’ll always be proud of, it’s achievement that paints a picture that I, personally, I’ve worked so hard to be here.
“It’s a community that I can say that I’m safe in and also to be surrounded by a group of ladies, talented ladies that share the same passion.
“It’s awesome, it’s been an awesome experience.”
Family support
Behind every sports player is a proud family whose support transcends limits known.
And in Nuku’s case, she said their support of her in the lead-up to her selection and now with the team in Gibraltar has been surreal.
“Amazing, it was surreal. My parents have been my number one support system,” she said.
News of the selection for the Baby Pearls’ final squad was made known via email, and for her, it was her mother who received the email that landed Nuku and her family on cloud nine.
“My dad was just jumping all over the place, my mom got the news first. She opened my email first,” she mentioned before chuckling and adding how being the youngest child gave way to that.
“My mom got the email first and she called; we were not in the same roof at the time, she was abroad.
“They were so happy because they’ve also sacrificed a lot of time to be with me.
“They go out of their way to provide my needs, so the support has been amazing.”
Besides her parents, her older siblings have been another source of encouragement in her journey.
“They are very proud of me, they remind me of it every day,” she said.
“There are times when I never want to go training, but they push me to go. I think the more they push me, I think it’s a driving factor for me because they believe in me so much.
“And they have been supporting me financially too.”
Gibraltar with the Pearls
Like her teammates, Nuku is looking forward to the competition at the 2025 Netball Youth World Cup in Gibraltar, which starts this weekend.
“It’s my first World Cup, so yes, I’m definitely looking forward to it,” she said.
She added getting the chance to meet other players had been a fun activity to undertake.
“It’s been fun, especially when we’ve been cut down to just 12 girls, we’ve gotten to know each other really well.
“And it’s a small circle, but we’re very comfortable and I think it’s so nice and amazing to get to know these girls better.
Message for the future Baby Pearls
“To the girls out there, anything is possible if you believe,” Nuku shared for upcoming netballers.
“Train hard and when you have a good support system, you’ll be fine and when you have God by your side, anything can happen and just believe in yourself.”
